Indonesia on Thursday expressed its will to join Türkiye's fifth-generation homegrown fighter jet project, seen as a milestone in the country's endeavor to upgrade its air force and curb external dependency.
The intention was expressed by Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto, who arrived in Ankara for talks with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, seeking to expand already robust relations with Türkiye.
Subianto referred to the Kaan warplane, a fifth-generation fighter jet Türkiye has worked on for almost a decade. The jet was first publicly unveiled in 2023 before it performed its maiden test flight in early 2024.
Kaan will make Türkiye one of the few countries with the infrastructure and technology to produce a fifth-generation combat aircraft.
Ankara has repeatedly voiced its intention to work together with friendly nations on the project.
Subianto expressed Indonesia's willingness to cooperate with Türkiye in the fields of economy, health, construction, energy and culture. His strongest emphasis is on the intention to further boost defense cooperation.
"We want an even stronger partnership," he told a news conference alongside Erdoğan, who visited the Southeast Asian country in February as part of his Asia tour.
"Indonesia also wishes to take part in the fifth-generation Kaan National Combat Aircraft project," he said.
Subianto also said Indonesia would like to be involved in Türkiye's initiative centered on manufacturing submarines.
"I admire Türkiye and am learning a lot from here," he said.
NATO member Türkiye launched the TF-X project to produce a national combat aircraft in 2016. Kaan is sought to replace the Air Forces Command's aging F-16 fleet, which is planned to be phased out starting in the 2030s.
Kaan will initially be powered by two General Electric F-110 engines, which are also used on fourth-generation Lockheed Martin F-16 jets.
Türkiye aims to use domestically produced engines on the jet in serial production, which is expected to start in 2028.
The aircraft will be capable of air-to-air combat with new-generation weapons and precision strikes from internal weapon bays at supersonic speed. It will also provide increased combat power with artificial intelligence and neural network support.
Erdoğan hailed close ties with the world's most populous Muslim-majority country and said the two nations sought to expand cooperation further and increase their bilateral goods exchange.
"We reviewed the potential steps to expand the trade volume to the target of $10 billion in a balanced manner, based on mutual benefit," he said.
Erdoğan and Subianto also oversaw the signing of deals on cooperation in media, public relations, and communication, culture and disaster management.
During his visit in February, Erdoğan gifted Subianto Togg, Türkiye's homegrown electric car.
The visit also saw Baykar, a globally recognized Turkish drone manufacturer, sign a joint venture agreement with Indonesian defense company Republikorp to establish an unmanned aerial vehicle manufacturing facility in the Southeast Asian country.
The collaboration aims to enhance Indonesia's manufacturing capabilities and covers the coproduction of flagship Bayraktar TB3 and Akıncı drones, which Baykar will export to the country.
The two countries signed a defense cooperation agreement in 2010, under which Indonesia's state-run arms producer Pindad and Türkiye's FNSS jointly developed a new model of medium tank.
In 2023, they agreed on a plan of action for joint military exercises and defense industry cooperation. The same year, Indonesia purchased 12 Turkish drones worth around $300 million in a push to upgrade its aging military.
