Defense Ministry Postpones Purchase of 12 Qatar's Used Fighter Jets
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4 January 2024 13:37 WIB
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Indonesian Defense Ministry decided to postpone the controversial plan to purchase 12 used Mirage 2000-5 fighter jets from Qatar. The ministry’s spokesperson Dahnil Anzar Simanjuntak said this was due to limited financial capacity.
He explained that the decision was made by two ministries; the Defense Ministry and the Finance Ministry. “The government has delayed the purchase of Mirage jets because our fiscal capacity, for the time being, cannot support such purchase,” Dahnil said in an event on a private TV station, as quoted from Reuters on Thursday, January 4.
However, Dahnil said the ministry would instead conduct a retrofit—adding new technology or features to the old system—for the existing Sukhoi and F16 aircraft. Dahnil and the Finance Ministry did not respond to Reuter’s request for clarification.
Reports revealed that Indonesia signed an agreement with the Czech defense company Czechoslovak Group (CSG) to purchase 12 Mirage 2000-5 fighter jets in January 2023. The purchase was worth 733 million euros or Rp12.4 trillion at an assumed exchange rate of Rp16,966 per euro.
The agreement stated that the secondhand jets would be delivered 24 months after the signing of the deal. The purchase would come as the government awaits the delivery of 42 Rafale fighter jets worth US$8.1 billion in 2022.
Criticism has been mounting from lawmakers who deem that the jets are outdated. President Joko Widodo or Jokowi approved a 20-percent increase in defense spending to US$25 billion by the end of 2024 in a bid to improve the country’s military hardware, however, the decision to delay the purchase of the Mirage jets was made.
Indonesian Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto runs for the presidential race which is scheduled for February 14, 2024. During his tenure, he has overseen the efforts to modernize the country’s aging military fleet, including the purchase of 12 new drones from Turkish Aerospace and fighter jets and transport helicopters from U.S. companies Boeing and Lockheed Martin.
REUTERS | MOH KHORY ALFARIZI
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