Navy awaits Defence Minister's decision on BrahMos missile deployment

Jakarta (ANTARA) - The Chief of the Indonesian Navy Information Service (Kadispenal), Rear Admiral Tunggul, stated that his side is still awaiting a decision from the Ministry of Defence of the Republic of Indonesia regarding the use of BrahMos missiles.

“As for the cooperation with India, this is still being handled by the Ministry of Defence,” Tunggul said during a press conference at Navy Headquarters in Cilangkap, East Jakarta, on Monday.

Tunggul was not yet able to elaborate further on the Navy’s plans for using the missiles, which are said to be well-suited for coastal defence.

Nevertheless, he welcomed the cooperation agreement between India and Indonesia on the development of BrahMos missiles.

With this cooperation in place, he believes Indonesia’s defence capabilities will grow stronger.

On the same occasion, a cooperation agreement for the procurement of air-to-air missiles (AAM) between Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL) and Republikorp was also announced.

The two documents formed part of 16 cooperation agreements announced during Prime Minister Modi’s state visit to Indonesia.

Indonesia has been targeting the acquisition of BrahMos missiles for several years. Days before Prime Minister Modi’s visit, the Indian Ambassador to Indonesia, Sandeep Chakravorty, stated that discussions on BrahMos procurement cooperation had entered a very advanced stage and were expected to reach an agreement soon.