New York, some 16 months ago: Seated next to Portuguese foreign minister Jaime Gama, Indonesian foreign minister Ali Alatas smiles broadly. The veins in his countenance are no longer tense, his face more relaxed after long years of protracted negotiations on East Timor (now the Republic of Timor Loro Sa’e). Their encounter ends in a firm handshake. That day, toward the end of April 1999, amid the spring air that wafted above New York’