France's Macron presses ahead on his South Asia tour with talks in Indonesia

Jakarta (Indonesia) | The French president met with his Indonesian counterpart on Wednesday as Emmanuel Macron continued his week-long trip to Southeast Asia focused on strengthening regional ties in an increasingly unstable global landscape.

Macron and France's first lady Brigitte Macron arrived in Indonesia's capital, Jakarta, on Tuesday evening for the second stop in his tour after Vietnam, where Macron signed a deal to sell Hanoi 20 Airbus planes.

On arrival, Macron had warm words for Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto, describing him as a brother and “a great friend of mine.” Military cooperation between Indonesia, Southeast Asia's largest economy, and France grew in recent years, starting in 2019 when Subianto became defence minister. He and Macron met last November on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Brazil, where they discussed Indonesia's plans to buy fighter jets and submarines from France.

Indonesia finalized an order for 42 French Dassault Rafale fighter jets in January 2024, with the first delivery expected in early 2026. The Asian nation also announced the purchase of two French Scorpene Evolved submarines and 13 Thales ground control interception radars.

Five of the radar systems are expected to be installed in Indonesia's new capital, Nusantara.

Indonesian Defence Minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin told reporters after welcoming Macron that the visit is aimed at strengthening "defence cooperation between Indonesia and France,” On Wednesday, Subianto hosted the Macrons in a ceremony at Merdeka Palace in Jakarta before the two leaders went in for a bilateral meeting.

Afterward, the two presidents oversaw the signing of more than a dozen agreements, including a letter of intent for Indonesia to purchase of strategic weapons systems, especially fighter planes and submarines.

The developments "can open a new perspective with new orders for Rafales, Scorpènes, and light frigates, along with consolidated joint exercises,” Macron said at a joint news conference.

Subianto said that France is one of Indonesia's main partners “in the modernisation of defence equipment, including in the development of the defence industry through joint production and technology transfer.” The two also discussed global issues, particularly the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East.

Indonesia is seeking to upgrade and modernize its arsenal and strengthen its domestic defence industry. Subianto crisscrossed the globe after becoming defence minister, travelling to China, France, Russia, Turkey and the United States in a bid to acquire new military weapon systems as well as surveillance and territorial defence capabilities.

The Indonesian Air Force currently operates a mix of fighter jets made in various countries, including the United States, Russia and Britain. Some of those aircraft have reached or will soon reach their end-of-life phase and need to be replaced or upgraded.

The two countries also signed agreements on trade, investment, energy, critical minerals and forestry.

Macron was also to meet with ASEAN's Secretary-General Kao Kim Hourn and speak at Jakarta State University.

On Thursday, Macron and his wife are to visit Borobudur, a 9th century Buddhist temple in the centre of Indonesia's Java island, and a military academy before heading to Singapore, where the French leader will speak at Asia's top defence conference, the annual Shangri-La Dialogue.