Sugiono: Indonesia and the Philippines Strengthen Defence Industry Cooperation

Foreign Minister of Indonesia Sugiono stated that Indonesia and the Philippines are continuously enhancing cooperation in the defence sector, particularly in the industrial aspect.

“There are several aircraft made by PT Dirgantara Indonesia that are used by the Philippine side, and that is what we want to strengthen our cooperation on,” Sugiono said after a bilateral meeting with Philippine Foreign Minister Theresa Lazaro in Jakarta on Thursday.

Sugiono said Indonesia is opening opportunities for the Philippines to procure defence equipment made in Indonesia through the applicable procurement mechanisms.

“We are also offering possibilities for them to procure defence equipment from Indonesia, of course, all through their internal mechanisms,” he added.

“We all know that the ethnic groups among our tribes, especially in North Sulawesi and in the Philippines, many of whom are family relations. So, we have succeeded in carrying out the registration and identification process,” he said.

Through the registration and identification process, Sugiono said, around 8,000 people of Indonesian descent and about 800 people of Filipino descent have been recorded, who will subsequently be granted rights according to their respective citizenships.

The Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that the Philippines is one of Indonesia’s main trading partners in Southeast Asia, with bilateral trade value in 2025 reaching $12.02 billion (Rp207.6 trillion).

The Philippines is also an important partner in strengthening energy resilience and is included as Indonesia’s largest coal export market in the region.

Indonesia and the Philippines also cooperate in the energy and strategic minerals sector, including through the Indonesia-Philippines Critical Minerals Partnership and nickel alliance to strengthen the global supply chain and downstream industries.