On october 6, 1960, President Soekarno of Indonesia introduced members of his group of officials and leaders to President Eisenhower in Washington. Among them was Dipa N. Aidit, since 1954 Secretary General of the Communist Party of Indonesia (Partai Kommunis Indonesia; PKI). The confrontation was unique, ironic, and symbolic. It illustrated United States' efforts to accept Indonesia on its own terms of neutralism; it was an instance of Soekarno's ebullient self-assertion; it marked a milestone on the Indonesian Communist movement's road from a low point of failure in 1948 to its present successful role of a party with 2 million card-carrying members that can claim control over some 8 million individuals in various labor, students, women and other “front” organizations.