US and Indonesian Defense Ministers Meet, Announce Establishment of Significant Defense Partnership

(Central News Agency, Washington, April 13, comprehensive foreign wire report) US Secretary of War Hegseth today met with Indonesian Defense Minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin at the Pentagon and announced the establishment of a significant defense partnership with Indonesia.

Agence France-Presse reported that Hegseth (Pete Hegseth) stated in a statement posted on social media platform X: 'In recognition of the strength and potential of our defense cooperation, we are elevating our bilateral relationship to a significant defense partnership.'

According to a joint statement, this partnership covers 'military modernization and capacity building,' 'training and professional military education,' and 'exercises and operational cooperation.'

The statement pointed out: 'The two countries also reaffirmed their shared commitment to maintaining peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region.'

The Indonesian government emphasized that the partnership is 'an opportunity to strengthen defense capabilities.' As for the US desire for US military aircraft to obtain overflight rights in Indonesian airspace, Jakarta is currently 'cautiously evaluating' this proposal.

According to the global military strength analysis website 'Global Firepower,' Indonesia possesses the strongest military in Southeast Asia.

Reuters reported that sources revealed that the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs had previously sent a letter warning the Ministry of Defense that the US proposal to grant comprehensive permission for US military aircraft to fly over Indonesian airspace carries the risk of involving Jakarta in potential South China Sea conflicts.

This letter, which had not been previously exposed, urged the Ministry of Defense to postpone reaching a final agreement with Washington. It is currently unclear whether Hegseth and Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin discussed the idea of overflying Indonesian airspace during their meeting.

Two Indonesian sources said that the proposal was originally scheduled to be signed at today's US-Indonesia defense ministers' meeting.

An anonymous US official said that although the statement did not mention the aforementioned proposal, it does not mean that the two sides did not discuss it privately. (Compiler: Hung Pei-ying) 1150414

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