JAKARTA, Oct. 27 (Xinhua) -- Indonesian Defense Minister Purnomo Yugiantoro said that his office will focus to detect and to prevent boat people entering the country, the Jakarta Post reported on Tuesday.

    However, he said, once inside the country, it is the Foreign Ministry's responsibility to handle the problem.

    The minister made the statement after holding a meeting with his Australian counterpart John Faulkner on influx of boat people in recent months.

    Although Faulkner did not hold a press conference after the meeting, a press release from his office said that the visit was a good opportunity to make early contact with his Indonesian counterpart and to follow up on issues discussed between Prime Minister Kevin Rudd and President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's.

    "Ministers will discuss the ongoing strength of the bilateral defense relationship and opportunities for further cooperation," said the press release.

    Separately, the Foreign Ministry's spokesman Teuku Faizasyah said that his office had provided assistance to more than 200 people smuggling victims from Sri Lanka who had recently entered Indonesia.

    Indonesia has become a stopover for boat people from Sri Lanka, Iraq, Bangladesh and Myanmar before making the short trip to their intended destination, Australia, a development that worried the country's authorities, with Prime Minister Rudd specially asking President Yudhoyono's help to tackle the issue during their meeting last week.