New Delhi reaches out to new Indonesian government ahead of a Modi-Subianto meeting at Brazil G-20
New Delhi may be looking east, at Indonesia’s new President Prabowo Subianto, as chief guest for its Republic Day 2025 celebrations, sources said. A number of high-level interactions with the new Indonesian government and defence deals are on the anvil, besides a possible invitation to the Indonesian military to participate in the parade.
While a formal invitation to President Subianto, a retired General and the former Defence Minister (2019-2024), is awaited, the sources said preparations are under way for a meeting between him and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the G-20 summit in Brazil later this month, where they are expected to discuss the possibility.
In a number of early outreaches, the government has already engaged the new government of Mr. Subianto, who was sworn in with his Vice-President, Gibran Rakabuming Raka, the son of outgoing President Joko Widodo, on October 20. Minister of State for External Affairs Pabitra Margherita flew to Jakarta to attend the inauguration, and is understood to have extended an invitation for an “early visit” to the new President. On October 23, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar held a bilateral meeting with the Indonesian Foreign Minister Sugiono on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in Kazan, where he said he had congratulated the Minister on his new assignment and “discussed further strengthening our Comprehensive Strategic Partnership”.
On Friday, an Indian Army contingent also reached Indonesia for the ninth edition of a joint special forces exercise, Garud Shakti 2024, under way at Cijantung, where they will train together for Special Forces Operations and counter-terrorism manoeuvres.
Indonesia’s first President Sukarno was India’s first chief guest for the Republic Day parade in 1950, and President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was invited in 2011, while President Widodo attended the parade along with leaders of all ASEAN countries in 2018.
According to official sources, including diplomatic and defence officials, the Ministry of Defence and the Indonesian Military have already been in touch about the possibility of a marching contingent of about 250 troops, which may be accompanied by Indonesian helicopters or aircraft at the Republic Day parade in January. It has become a practice in recent years to invite the military contingent of the visiting chief guest to march down Kartavya Path (Rajpath). Last year, France became the first foreign country to have Rafale fighter jets in the fly-past.
The outreach to the new President also comes as India has been keen to conclude a number of defence deals with Indonesia, including for indigenous Light Combat Aircraft, and possible Akash Surface to Air Missile systems, and helicopters among others, officials in the know said. As India looks to increase its defence exports, South East Asia has emerged as a focus area with several countries in the region – especially, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines and Thailand – expressing desire to acquire military hardware as well as improve their domestic defence industry.
Another deal high on the agenda is for BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles, an Indo-Russian joint development, which has been under discussion for several years now. Philippines became the first export customer for the BrahMos in 2024. India has been keen to also showcase its Maintenance, Repair and Overall (MRO) facilities, particularly for Rafale fighter jets that Indonesia has also acquired.
Shortly after his landslide election victory in May, Mr. Subianto, who was then still Defence Minister, had received Indian Ambassador Sandeep Chakravorthy and said, “The Defense Ministry is ready to cooperate [with India]… Our discussions are constructive and there are promising prospects for future collaboration…,” according to a press release by the Indonesian Defence Ministry.
Indonesia’s new President Prabowo Subianto may be Republic Day 2025 chief guest choice
New Delhi reaches out to new Indonesian government ahead of a Modi-Subianto meeting at Brazil G-20
New Delhi may be looking east, at Indonesia’s new President Prabowo Subianto, as chief guest for its Republic Day 2025 celebrations, sources said. A number of high-level interactions with the new Indonesian government and defence deals are on the anvil, besides a possible invitation to the Indonesian military to participate in the parade.
While a formal invitation to President Subianto, a retired General and the former Defence Minister (2019-2024), is awaited, the sources said preparations are under way for a meeting between him and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the G-20 summit in Brazil later this month, where they are expected to discuss the possibility.
In a number of early outreaches, the government has already engaged the new government of Mr. Subianto, who was sworn in with his Vice-President, Gibran Rakabuming Raka, the son of outgoing President Joko Widodo, on October 20. Minister of State for External Affairs Pabitra Margherita flew to Jakarta to attend the inauguration, and is understood to have extended an invitation for an “early visit” to the new President. On October 23, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar held a bilateral meeting with the Indonesian Foreign Minister Sugiono on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in Kazan, where he said he had congratulated the Minister on his new assignment and “discussed further strengthening our Comprehensive Strategic Partnership”.
On Friday, an Indian Army contingent also reached Indonesia for the ninth edition of a joint special forces exercise, Garud Shakti 2024, under way at Cijantung, where they will train together for Special Forces Operations and counter-terrorism manoeuvres.
Indonesia’s first President Sukarno was India’s first chief guest for the Republic Day parade in 1950, and President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was invited in 2011, while President Widodo attended the parade along with leaders of all ASEAN countries in 2018.
According to official sources, including diplomatic and defence officials, the Ministry of Defence and the Indonesian Military have already been in touch about the possibility of a marching contingent of about 250 troops, which may be accompanied by Indonesian helicopters or aircraft at the Republic Day parade in January. It has become a practice in recent years to invite the military contingent of the visiting chief guest to march down Kartavya Path (Rajpath). Last year, France became the first foreign country to have Rafale fighter jets in the fly-past.
The outreach to the new President also comes as India has been keen to conclude a number of defence deals with Indonesia, including for indigenous Light Combat Aircraft, and possible Akash Surface to Air Missile systems, and helicopters among others, officials in the know said. As India looks to increase its defence exports, South East Asia has emerged as a focus area with several countries in the region – especially, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines and Thailand – expressing desire to acquire military hardware as well as improve their domestic defence industry.
Another deal high on the agenda is for BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles, an Indo-Russian joint development, which has been under discussion for several years now. Philippines became the first export customer for the BrahMos in 2024. India has been keen to also showcase its Maintenance, Repair and Overall (MRO) facilities, particularly for Rafale fighter jets that Indonesia has also acquired.
Shortly after his landslide election victory in May, Mr. Subianto, who was then still Defence Minister, had received Indian Ambassador Sandeep Chakravorthy and said, “The Defense Ministry is ready to cooperate [with India]… Our discussions are constructive and there are promising prospects for future collaboration…,” according to a press release by the Indonesian Defence Ministry.
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