NEW DELHI: India and Indonesia signed agreements on missile systems on Tuesday, marking an expansion of Indian defense exports and closer security cooperation as Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto in Jakarta.
Modi arrived in the capital of Southeast Asia’s largest economy on Monday afternoon and was welcomed by Subianto at the airport. Indonesia is the first stop of his week-long Indo-Pacific tour, before Australia and New Zealand.
Among the 14 memoranda signed during the Jakarta trip are contracts between Indonesia’s Ministry of Defense and the Indian-Russian defense corporation Brahmos Aerospace for the purchase of BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles, and between Bharat Dynamics and Indonesian defense company Republikorp for Astra air-to-air missile systems.
Other pacts included cooperation in minerals, steel supply chain technology, and space exploration.
While the terms of the agreements were not disclosed, Modi said during a joint press conference with Subianto that relations with Indonesia have been gaining “renewed energy, greater confidence, and deeper strategic depth” since the establishment of a comprehensive strategic partnership in 2018.
