1Berita English – Director General of Budget of the Ministry of Finance (MoF) Isa Rachmatarwata speaks up about the decision of Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto to postpone the purchase of 12 Mirage 2000-5 fighter jets from Qatar.
He stated that the prioritization of defense equipment purchases falls under the authority of the Ministry of Defense.
“As for which defense equipment takes priority for purchase, it is certainly within the authority of the Ministry of Defense,” Isa said on Sunday (1/7), as quoted from detikcom.
The Ministry of Defense had recently signed a contract for the purchase of 12 Mirage 2000-5 fighter jets from Qatar. The contract for the purchase of these used fighter jets is approximately US$792 million or IDR 11.8 trillion.
According to a written statement from the Ministry of Defense, the procurement of these aircraft is necessary because Indonesia requires fighter aircraft that can be quickly delivered to cover the decline in the operational readiness of the Indonesian Air Force (TNI AU). This decline is attributed to the expiration of the service life of many TNI AU fighter jets, the need for upgrades and overhauls/repairs, and the lengthy delivery time of newly ordered aircraft.
However, the Ministry of Defense recently delayed the plan to purchase the 12 Mirage 2000-5 fighter jets from Qatar.
The spokesperson for Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto, Dahnil Anzar Simanjuntak, explained that the delay was agreed upon by the Ministry of Defense and the Ministry of Finance due to fiscal limitations.
“The government, in this case, MoF and MoD, agreed to postpone the purchase of the Mirage 2000-5 aircraft. Why? Because our fiscal capacity at the moment cannot support the purchase of Mirage 2000-5, so there is a delay,” Dahnil said when confirmed on Wednesday night (1/3).
Dahnil further explained that the government is currently planning to retrofit existing aircraft while waiting for the arrival of the Dassault Rafale jets.
“In other words, our Sukhoi and F-16 aircraft, in layman’s terms, will be repaired. This is to fill the gap in our air defense while waiting for the Rafale jets that we have ordered,” he said.
