Indonesia has bought 12 new drones from Turkish Aerospace Industries at a value of $300 million, and the Indonesian Defense Ministry said on Tuesday, the latest in purchases aimed at modernizing ageing military equipment in the country.
The deal comes after Indonesian President Joko Widodo demanded that the cabinet maintain a “sound” budget in July and highlighted huge spending by the country’s security services, including the defence ministry.
In January, the defence secretary struck an $800 million deal to buy 12 Mirage 2000-5 fighter jets, which drew criticism for being too old. In February, Indonesia bought 42 Rafale fighter jets for $8.1 billion, which will be delivered in phases over several years.
According to government data, the Ministry of Defense received the largest allocation from the country’s total budget this year, amounting to 134.3 trillion rupees ($8.89 billion).
Indonesia concluded the agreement with the Ankara-based Turkish Aerospace Industries Company in February, and the drones are expected to be delivered within 32 months of signing.
The Defense Ministry said in a statement that the deal also includes training and flight simulators.
