Indonesia received the first batch of three Rafale jets in January, and Monday’s ceremony included an additional three jets for the military, defence ministry spokesman Rico Ricardo Sirait told AFP.
He underscored the jets’ importance to strengthen Indonesia’s air defence system and claimed that defence equipment modernisation was also an investment to safeguard the nation’s sovereignty.
“The government views the strengthening of defence equipment not merely as the procurement of combat platforms, but as a strategic investment aimed at safeguarding sovereignty, national honour and national defence readiness,” he said.
Prabowo, a former military general who came to power in 2024, has sought to modernise Indonesia’s ageing military assets.
He met with French President Emmanuel Macron last month in Paris, where the two leaders discussed bolstering strategic cooperation, including through the “procurement of defence equipment and the strengthening of the defence industry”, according to an Indonesian government statement.