Kalla: Indonesia Rejects US Hospital Ship Aid for Quake Victims  

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Vice President Jusuf Kalla or JK said the Indonesian government rejected the hospital ship aid offered by the U.S. President Donald Trump to quake-hit Palu and Donggala, Central Sulawesi.

“No, we did not accept [the hospital ship aid from the US],” said Kalla in his office, Jakarta, Tuesday, October 2.

JK explained that the government refused Trump`s offer on the hospital ship because the unit number was adequate and learned from the previous tsunami in Aceh in 2004, where there were only five patients came to the ship.

JK also emphasized that aid such as in the form of sending more troopers or hospital ships, were not needed. Indonesia, he said, is prioritizing foreign aid in the form of reconstruction aid.

Read: Palu Quake; Govt to be Selective in Accepting International Aid

Trump, during a press conference in the White House today, extended his condolences to Indonesia for the powerful earthquake and subsequent tsunami in Palu and Donggala, Central Sulawesi province.

President Trump said that he had deployed the first responders' team, military personnel, and other teams to handle with the impact of the disasters.

President Joko ‘Jokowi’ Widodo earlier said that the government would accept international aid for the victims in the disaster-hit regions.

As many as 18 countries include the United States, France, Czech Republic, Switzerland, Norway, Hungary, Turkey, the European Union, Australia, South Korea, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, New Zealand, Singapore, Thailand, Japan, India, and China stated its willingness to help quake-hit Donggala and Palu.

FRISKI RIANA

Editor's Note: The title of this article has been revised from previously said `Kalla: Indonesia Rejects US Aid to Donggala, Palu Quake` to `Kalla: Indonesia Rejects US Hospital Ship Aid for Quake Victims` and a fourth paragraph was added, and we also revised the first until the third paragraph by adding `Hospital Ship aid` for better accuracy.