By Prashanth Parameswaran
Which submarine type will Jakarta end up buying?
Indonesia has still not made a decision on what type of submarines it will purchase, the country’s navy chief said last week.
As I have noted previously, Indonesia currently only has two German-built Type 209 submarines, woefully inadequate for the world’s largest archipelagic state. Defense officials say Indonesia needs at least 12 submarines by 2024 to police its waters. Indonesia ordered three South Korean submarines back in 2012, and officials had indicated earlier this year that two more new ones would be purchased – most likely from Russia – even though specifics were still unclear (See: “Indonesia to Buy New Submarines From Russia”).
On December 16, according to The Jakarta Post, Ade Supandi, the chief of staff of the Indonesian navy (TNI-AL), clarified that while Jakarta had decided to buy diesel submarines, it is still currently reviewing three types of submarines from three countries: Russia, South Korea, and Germany.
Read the full story at The Diplomat