Indonesian Defence Minister Purnomo Yusgiantoro has said that the
Indonesian military (TNI) will become the biggest force in Southeast
Asia in 2014 thanks to its strategic plan to procure main armament
systems.
The Defence Minister made the statement at a
ceremony to launch two fast combat ships, namely KRI Pari-849 and
KRI Sembilang-850 on September 5.
Among the main armament
systems the Indonesian military would procure are fast patrol ships for
the Navy, leopard tanks for the Army and Sukhoi fighter jets for the Air
Force, he said.
Yusgiantoro said a strong Indonesian
military would be important not only for national security but also for
regional security.
He stressed that the modernisation of the
country’s main armament systems is part of the national long-term
strategy to defend national independence and sovereignty, not for arms
race.-VNA