Turkey and Indonesia Deepen Defense Ties with Strategic Agreements in Jakarta

On 26 August, representatives of Turkey’s leading defense industry companies signed important agreements with Indonesia. Reflecting the strong ties between Turkey and Indonesia, these strategic agreements were signed in the capital, Jakarta, as part of the visit of a large Turkish delegation coordinated by the Turkish Presidency of Defence Industries to Indonesian President and Minister of Defense Prabowo Subianto.

According to a statement released by the Turkish Defence Industry Presidency, Aselsan will provide Indonesia with the Stabilised Advanced Remote Weapon Platform (SARP), the four-dimensional search radar ‘CENK,’ a fire control system, and the company’s Data Link. Roketsan, another major Turkish defense company, will support the Southeast Asian country with ‘MAM-L’ smart micro-ammunition, ‘ÇAKIR‘ cruise missile, and ‘SUNGUR‘ air defense missile systems.

Test-fire footage of the SUNGUR MANPADS developed by Roketsan / From the Turkish Defense Industry Presidency

In addition to the above-mentioned agreements, important Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) were signed between the parties on unmanned surface vehicles, tank modernization, and missile systems maintenance.

Commenting on the visit and the agreements signed, Prof. Dr. Haluk Görgün, President of Defence Industries of the Republic of Turkey, said: 

“As a reflection of the strong ties between Türkiye and Indonesia, we took part in a series of signing ceremonies where our leader defense industry companies entered into significant agreements with their local partners and end users. These strategic agreements in the defense industry represent a significant step towards transforming the collaboration between our two nations into concrete projects. With our Secretariat coordination, we believe that these agreements will lay the groundwork for even greater achievements by combining the capabilities of Türkiye and Indonesia in the field of defense.”

He added that Turkey is “confident that these agreements will not only strengthen the strategic partnership between our two countries but also positively impact regional and global security dynamics,” continuing, “we wish this important collaboration to bring prosperity to both Türkiye and Indonesia and reaffirm our belief that we will achieve even greater and more successful projects in the future.”

Turkey and Indonesia have close relations on defense and security issues. Before these agreements, Southeast Asian countries had signed several agreements in recent years to purchase military equipment from Turkey and to develop joint projects. Some of these are as follows:

  • Kaplan MT [locally known as Harimau] Modern Medium Weight Tanks (MMWT) were jointly developed by Turkish manufacturer FNSS and Indonesian manufacturer Pindad.
  • KHAN (BORA) ballistic missile developed by Roketsan.
  • ATMACA anti-ship missile developed by Roketsan.
  • TriSula Medium/High Altitude Air Defence System developed for Indonesia in cooperation with Roketsan and CZECHOSLOVAK GROUP.
  • ANKA-S unmanned aerial vehicle developed by Turkish Aerospace Industries.
  • ADVENT combat management system (CMS) developed by Havelsan.
  • Boğaziçi Defence production İLTER Drone Detection and Interception System.
The Kaplan MT/Harimau Modern Medium Weight Tank / From FNSS

Some of these products have already been delivered, and some will be delivered shortly by the contract work programs. In addition, the two countries are believed to be negotiating other additional projects, including military training aircraft, UAVs, helicopters, submarines, ships, radars, and naval guns.