France’s Macron, Indonesia’s Prabowo to discuss defense ties

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Indonesia is the second leg of French President Emmanuel Macron's regional trip after Vietnam, where the two countries signed deals worth over $10 billion

JAKARTA, Indonesia – French President Emmanuel Macron will meet his Indonesian counterpart Prabowo Subianto in Jakarta on Wednesday, May 28, and strengthening defense ties with Paris’ biggest arms client in Southeast Asia will be prominent in their talks.

Indonesia is the second leg of Macron’s regional trip after Vietnam, where the two countries signed deals worth over $10 billion. He is scheduled to fly to Singapore on Thursday.

Indonesian Defense Minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin, who welcomed Macron on his arrival on Tuesday night, said the countries would sign a defense letter of intent and develop cooperation in “strategic military hardware”, citing fighter jets and submarines.

The foreign ministry had earlier said the two sides would discuss “existing strategic partnerships” without giving specific details about the areas of discussion.

In 2022, the two countries signed an $8.1 billion defence deal that included an order for 42 Rafale fighter jets made by France’s Dassault Aviation, as well as a series of agreements including submarine development and ammunition.

“Some commitments need follow-up and Indonesia has shown interest in some other military hardware, but there has been no progress yet,” said Khairul Fahmi, a military expert at Indonesia-based Institute for Security and Strategic Studies.

No Rafale jets have been delivered to Indonesia yet. The chief of the Indonesian Air Force Mohamad Tonny Harjono said in February that six jets would arrive in Indonesia in early 2026, state news agency Antara reported.

Aside from the Rafale deal, Indonesia in 2024 struck an agreement with French state-owned shipyard Naval Group to buy two “Scorpene” submarines, and in 2023 announced the purchase of 13 long-range air surveillance radars from France’s Thales.

Prabowo, who became president last year, was the defense minister when these deals were signed.

Macron’s delegation to mineral-rich Indonesia includes French mining group Eramet’s new CEO Paulo Castellari. Eramet chairwoman Christel Bories said they would look to discuss mining permits in relation to the Weda Bay nickel mine.

Indonesia is the world’s largest producer of nickel, and also holds the biggest known reserves of the metal. Eramet and other companies have complained about reduced volume allowances.

The group also has been in talks with Indonesia’s new sovereign wealth fund, Danantara, about battery supply-chain investments, with Eramet still wanting to get into nickel processing after dropping a plan to build a plant with BASF last year. – Rappler.com