Pakistan Defense Minister Chaudhary Ahmed Mukhtar offers his Indonesian counterpart the latest jet fighter called the JF-17 during his visit to Jakarta on Wednesday.Defense Minister Purnomo Yusgiantoro responded to the offer, saying that further discussion would be conducted in October.
Minister Mukhtar was here to sign the Defense Cooperation Agreement between the two countries at the Defense Ministry.
“We will see it first before we decide if we have an interest in purchasing the aircraft,” Purnomo said.
He said the JF-17 jet fighter was the product of a joint production between Pakistan and China. The manufacturers claimed the jet to be cheaper and stronger than the US F-16.
Purnomo said he learned there had been 500 JF-17 jet fighters produced; 350 are allocated for Pakistan and the remaining 150 are for China.
“I have been informed that Pakistan’s jet fighter’s level is above the US F-16 jet fighter, as well as Russia’s Sukhoi. But we need to see it first hand,” he said.
Minister Mukhtar said the jet fighter project was a result of years of engineering improvements that was made by the Pakistan defense industry back home.
“We have developed our defense industry properly, we have prepared for those who plan to disrupt our peace,” he said.
Pakistan Ambassador to Indonesia Sanaullah, who also attended the press conference, promoted the product, saying the aircraft had met the requirements to be used by the Indonesian military.
The Defense Ministry is currently developing its own jet fighter project with South Korea. Dubbed the KFX project, the project is aimed at providing both countries with five jet fighter prototypes before 2020.
Mass production of the KFX jet fighter is expected to take place after the project reaches its break-even point of 200 aircraft units.
Bhatara Ibnu Reza, Imparsial’s research coordinator, warned that the Indonesian military should prioritize the improvement of its own defense industry.
He said if offers like that from Pakistan contributed to the reinforcement of the country’s defense industry, then Imparsial suggested Indonesia take advantage of it.
“I strongly suggest that we pay serious attention to rebuilding our defense industry so it becomes a strong backbone for the future,” he told The Jakarta Post.
In addition to offering the jet fighter, the Pakistan defense minister also tightened cooperation in the field of education and sharing intelligence on counterterrorism.
Both countries have also planned to conduct a joint naval exercise in December this year.
“We face similar internal security problems here. Therefore cooperation will enable us to tackle these problems,” he said.
The Pakistani defense minister visit is the latest, after China’s Central Military Commissioner, Guo Boxiong, visited the country in May.
Pakistan’s Ambassador to Indonesia, Sanaullah, Defence Attaché, Col. Zafarullah, members of Pakistani Defence Delegation, Indonesian Ambassador to Pakistan Isaac Latuconsina and senior Indonesian military officials attended the ceremony. The signing ceremony was preceded by talks between the two Defence Ministers. Defence Minister Ahmad Mukhtar welcomed signing of the agreement at the joint press conference saying that all Pakistanis to this day remembered Indonesia’s cooperation and assistance offered to Pakistan in the 1965 war and hold this country in high esteem.
ur cooperation is bound to grow in future as well, he added. He said the agreement would open new avenues of cooperation between the two countries, besides strengthening their defence cooperation. He made particular mention of cooperation in the field of trade, commerce and industries. He said Pakistan had taken up the fight against terrorism not only for its own sake but also for the sake of peace in the region. He said terrorists had no faith or face and didn’t have any regard for humanity, so they needed to be eliminated. He said Pakistan had lost over 10,000 lives in the war on terror which was a huge sacrifice. He appreciated the role being played by the Pakistan army to put an end to the scourge of terrorism. He also welcomed cooperation between Pakistan and Indonesia in the fight against terrorism as he said both countries were facing this problem. The Minister said along with defence collaboration, the sphere of defence production was also very important. Talking of specific areas for mutual cooperation, the Minister pointed out the JF-17 project, joint military exercises, training of military personnel and high level exchanges between the two armed forces. Replying to a question, the Defence Minister Ahmad Mukhtar said Pakistan wished to see peace being fully realised in Afghanistan as the Afghans had suffered much more due to militancy. “We want to see them living happily” he said. Indonesian Defence Minister addressing the press conference also welcomed the signing of the agreement and hoped that Pakistan and Indonesia will develop their cooperation in defence as well as the economic sector. He said we all know that Indonesia and Pakistan already have a historical cooperation.
He said the two countries so far had exchanges in the field of military training and this will be expanded to other areas. He said the Indonesian National Army had sent about 47 personnel to Pakistan and received about 60 from Pakistan. He also explained that the defence mechanisms of Indonesia and Pakistan were quite similar. Moreover, as Islamic countries they had common problems; that was why their cooperation had been growing, he added.
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