When Aid Breeds Suspicion

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In an interview with TIME, Yudhoyono emphasized his nation's gratitude. "I see the Indonesian people as thankful for the solidarity, spontaneity and assistance coming from foreign countries, including the United States," he said. "This has given a positive impression to the Indonesian people." But Yudhoyono has created an acute political problem by opening up Aceh to 1,700 foreign soldiers, 2,500 foreign aid workers and civilian volunteers, and scores of journalists. Indonesia has been fighting a resilient separatist movement in the province for three decades. Since a cease-fire broke down between the government and the rebels two years ago, the powerful Indonesian military has controlled Aceh, and the outside world has been kept out. The military doesn't want international sympathy to grow for the rebels as a result of the tsunami, and it doesn't want the rebels to get too much of the aid. That's because it doesn't want to give the rebels time to regroup. The day after the tsunami, Yudhoyono ordered the military to stop combat operations and focus on humanitarian operations. But he has also instructed that all foreign relief operations on the ground be escorted by Indonesian troops.

The U.S. is already seeing signs of the Indonesians' paranoia. At the U-Tapao Air Base in Thailand, the crew of an Air Force C-17 cargo plane spent nearly three hours last Thursday loading humvees, all-terrain vehicles and biscuits to be delivered to Banda Aceh, the capital of Aceh province. The Marines were strapped into their seats when the flight was canceled. "It was the damn Indonesians," says an Air Force sergeant who asked not to be named. "They didn't want this stuff in their country."

Bush Administration officials insist the Indonesians have not issued a deadline for U.S. troops to stop their relief work, but last week they moved a carrier group outside Indonesian waters. It was quiet recognition that for all the optimism surrounding the mercy mission, political realities may soon overrun the help. "We'd like to be out of this business as soon as we responsibly can," Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz told reporters in Bangkok. "The U.S. military has a lot of other work to do." The troops doing the work might disagree. "There are a lot of people here who need help, and we won't be able to give them all the help we can," says Lieut. Hinckley. He has another reason for wanting to stay in the region. "Otherwise," he says, "we'd be in Iraq." --With reporting by Simon Elegant/ Banda Aceh, Jason Tedjasukmana/Calang and Douglas Waller/Washington