Aircraft purchase
Aircraft purchase
From Merdeka
To my way of thinking, the purchase of jetfighters from Russia after the cancelled purchase of U.S.-made F-16s is quite appropriate. It seems the accounts are settled with this purchase of Russian jetfighters.
The accounts are settled in that the purchase of Sukhoi-30 jetfighters and M-117 helicopters, worth trillions of rupiah, will be bartered with our agricultural produce such as oil palms, tea and so forth. Once we did practice counter purchase when we bartered our CN-235 aircraft with Thailand's glutinous rice.
Therefore, the barter of our aircraft, manufactured by National Aircraft Manufacturing Industry (IPTN) with glutinous rice from Thailand, which some people have cynically made remarks about, has turned out to be profitable and useful. Russia, a country with the technology as advanced as that of the United States, is ready to accept this counter purchase method, that is, exchanging its 12 jet fighters for Indonesia's agricultural produce. Obviously this sale is mutually beneficial in terms of both countries' domestic needs.
However, this does not mean that a sale is conducted on the basis of a barter with our agricultural produce as this method must be employed only on the basis of each country's need.
Russia sees no problem accepting payment in the form of agricultural produce. To Indonesia, this decision is daring enough as it is made after the rejection of any attempt to link the sale of F-16 fighter planes with human rights matters.
The purchase of these Russian aircraft means a challenge to Indonesian sons to master Russian technology. It is our hope that we can master the technology and transfer it to us in order that we man some day manufacture the aircraft ourselves and ensure that we are not short of spare parts for the planes, like Iran which purchased fighter planes from the United States. Unfortunately, the U.S. refused to deliver the spare parts once a political change occurred in Iran. In such a case, purchasing advanced airplanes will be meaningless because you cannot fly them.
May the inclusion of additional jetfighters in our air force strengthen our country's defense and security.
L. WARSONO
Jakarta