09 October 2015

Editorial: Will Indonesia Buy French Stealth Submarines?

By Franz-Stefan Gady

Jakarta is interested in bolstering its deterrence capabilities.

Indonesian defense official have expressed interest in purchasing French-built Scorpene-class 1000 diesel-electric attack submarines (SSK) IHS Jane’s Navy International reports.

Representatives of the French shipbuilder DCNS, the company offering the boats, confirmed Indonesian-French government-to-government talks at this year’s Pacific 2015 International Maritime Exhibition currently taking place in Sydney, Australia.

“The talks are going on at the government-to-government level, mostly to discuss the needs of the Indonesian Navy,” according to a DCNS representative interviewed by IHS Jane’s Navy International.

“So far, what the Indonesians have identified is the need for a complementary submarine fleet that can fill in the gaps of their new ocean-going submarines, and they are considering the Scorpene 1000.”

Read the full story at The Diplomat