Bishop vows to keep spies away

Australia has agreed to a six-point plan aimed at repairing relations with Indonesia, with Foreign Affairs Minister Julie Bishop also providing assurances during talks in Jakarta that the Abbott Government will not use intelligence to spy on its northern neighbour.

Ms Bishop, travelling with a high-powered delegation of senior Australian officials, including Defence Department chief Dennis Richardson and the head of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Peter Varghese, is on a mission to repair relations with Indonesia.

A so-called "hotline" will be established in the hope of avoiding future rows.

Indonesian Foreign Affairs Minister Marty Natalegawa also insisted that military and police co-operation, as well as sharing of intelligence, would not be restored until all six points in President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's roadmap were addressed.

He declined to nominate a timeframe for discussions about the code of conduct that Dr Yudhoyono demanded in the wake of revelations his phone, and those of his wife and inner circle, were monitored by Australian spies in 2009.

Dr Natalegawa said he had already reported to the President after the talks.

A more detailed report would be given to Dr Yudhoyono, who is in East Java, after which it would be decided if the discussions could move to step two in the President's roadmap - the drafting of the code of conduct.

"Essentially, the President expressed he was pleased that we were able to communicate today and he is pleased by the progress that has been made, and asked that further efforts be made so that we can address in full all the various bilateral issues that must be addressed," Dr Natalegawa said.

He would not reveal if a more detailed explanation was given in relation to the spying activities that have sent relations between Jakarta and Canberra to their lowest point since the East Timor crisis in 2006.

"Certainly, our communication today helped elucidate some issues that were not specifically mentioned in the letter from the Prime Minister," Dr Natalegawa said.

Ms Bishop said both sides had expressed a commitment to restoring the relationship.

"We note the steps set out by President Yudhoyono that must be taken in order to normalise the relationship and, of course, we agree to adhere to those steps," Ms Bishop said.