Navy goes ballistic over missile project

Tiarma Siboro, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The Indonesian Navy is sponsoring the development of the first locally made missile as part of a program to develop an indigenous defense industry.

In cooperation with the National Aeronautics and Space Agency (LAPAN) and the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI), the Navy has already paid out a total of Rp 25 billion (US$27 million) to finance a one-year study into the project. The first prototype of the missile is expected to be ready in 2006.

"I'm making the project one of my priorities as we (the Navy) have been relying far too much on other countries to supply our weaponry. And given the embargo (imposed by the U.S. and its allies), we can't even maintain our equipment," Navy Chief of Staff Bernard Kent Sondakh told the press after he and LAPAN President Mahdi Kartasasmita signed an MoU on the missile project on Monday.

Bernard declined to disclose the cost of developing the missile, nor the number of units that would eventually be procured.

"Basically, the missiles will be installed on our patrol boats and warships so that they will be able to defend our vast maritime territory," he said.

Meanwhile, Mahdi said that LAPAN had modified some types of missiles in the past in collaboration with a number of overseas countries, but the current project "will be the first ever locally made missile. It's range will be up to 25 kilometers."

The missile will be called the Sondakh, named in honor of the Navy chief of staff.

For years, Indonesia has procured its defense equipment from the United States and France.

Efforts to diversify potential supplier countries recently started after the Indonesian Military (TNI) faced difficulties in securing military equipment following the imposition of an embargo by the United States in 1999 following the mayhem in East Timor during and after the independence vote there.

In the past, LAPAN developed a number of missiles as part of the Kartika Project, which was launched by the country's first president, Soekarno, in the 1960s.

At the time, the project raised the hackles of several Western countries as Indonesia tended to side with the East Bloc.

"It must be underlined that the current project is far from being offensive. No, we'll never be like that. It is merely motivated by our defense interests," Bernard said.

As part of the project, the Navy has also invited arms producer PT Pindad and aerospace company PT Dirgantara Indonesian, both located in Bandung, West Java, and the National Electronics Institute (LEN), to participate.