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Indonesia purchases Turkish drones in military modernization push

Jakarta’s defense ministry has spent lavishly in recent months, which has drawn criticism from President Widodo

Jakarta has purchased 12 drones from Turkiye's Aerospace Industries valued at $300 million, Indonesia's defense ministry announced on 1 August, as part of a broader push to modernize the country’s ageing military.

The deal was finalized in February and the drones are expected to be delivered within 32 months of the signing. It also includes training and flight simulators, the defense ministry said in a statement.

In recent years, Jakarta and Ankara have collaborated closely to develop joint defense industries, including by partnering to produce the Kaplan medium weight tank. 

Turkish Aerospace Industries have also teamed with Indonesia’s Assessment and Application of Technology Research Organization (BPPT) to conduct aerodynamics research, according to Tamer Ozmen, Vice President of Turkish Aerospace Corporate Marketing and Communication.

The purchase of Turkish drones comes a month after Indonesian President Joko Widodo urged his government to maintain a "healthy" military budget in comments criticizing outsized spending by the defense ministry recently.

In January, Indonesian Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto signed an $800 million agreement with France to purchase 12 Mirage 2000-5 fighter jets. The deal drew criticism over the fighter jet's outdated technological capabilities. A month later, Jarkarta signed another agreement with Paris to purchase 42 Rafale fighter jets worth $8.1 billion.

In addition to modernizing its military, Indonesia has in recent months sought to boost bi-lateral trade with multiple countries, including those under heavy US economic sanction. 

In May, President Widodo signed 11 documents in several fields with his Iranian counterpart Ebrahim Raisi to boost bilateral trade and to promote "exchanges in national currencies," rather than the US dollar. 

US economic sanctions on Iran limit the ability of other countries to engage in US dollar-based transactions with the Islamic Republic. The US imposed sanctions on Iran due to its nuclear program. The US accuses Iran of developing nuclear weapons, while Iran has stated that developing nuclear weapons is un-Islamic.

After Washington imposed additional sweeping sanctions on Russia following its intervention in Ukraine in February 2022, many countries have sought to minimize their dependence on the US dollar for trade. 

Indonesia is a part of the ASEAN alliance of Southeast Asian countries, which has also been moving away from the US dollar.

During the 42nd ASEAN summit in May, Indonesia and other member states signed an agreement for "better regional payment connectivity and the use of local currency transactions," in a move "seen as the bloc's strategy to transition away from established currencies … such as the US dollar."

 

 

 https://new.thecradle.co/articles/indonesia-purchases-turkish-drones-in-military-modernization-push