The latest round of talks between Alatas and his Portuguese counterpart, Jaime Gama, had been overshadowed by a delay in reaching agreement on an autonomy package for East Timor - even though the two sides agreed last month to a wide-ranging autonomy which granted elected Timorese leaders control of all affairs except for defense, most foreign relations issues and monetary policy.
The latest round of talks between Alatas and his Portuguese counterpart, Jaime Gama, had been overshadowed by a delay in reaching agreement on an autonomy package for East Timor - even though the two sides agreed last month to a wide-ranging autonomy that granted elected Timorese leaders control of all affairs except for defense, most foreign-relations issues and monetary policy.