Indonesia was Southeast Asia’s largest arms importer in 2021–2025, accounting for 1.5 percent of global arms imports and ranking 18th worldwide. Behind this position lies an interesting pattern, Jakarta does not rely on a single supplier but instead sources weapons from multiple countries.
According to SIPRI’s report Trends in International Arms Transfers, 2025 for the 2021–2025 period, Indonesia’s three largest suppliers were Italy (40 percent of total imports), the United States (16 percent), and France (14 percent). Beyond these countries, however, the supplier list continues to expand, with new contracts in recent years also coming from Türkiye and Japan.
Italy, the US, and France: The Top Three Suppliers
Italy was Indonesia’s largest supplier, accounting for 40 percent of total arms imports in 2021–2025. During this period, Indonesia signed a €1.18 billion contract in March 2024 to purchase two PPA (Pattugliatore Polivalente d'Altura) vessels from shipbuilder Fincantieri.
The first vessel, KRI Brawijaya, arrived at Tanjung Priok in September 2025. The second, KRI Prabu Siliwangi, arrived in Indonesia in March 2026. Together, they are now the largest surface combatants operated by the Indonesian Navy.
The United States accounted for 16 percent of Indonesia’s total arms imports in 2021–2025. France ranked third with a 14 percent share, supported by a $8.1 billion contract for 42 Rafale fighter jets signed in 2022, with deliveries of the first aircraft beginning in 2026.
Türkiye and Japan: Emerging Suppliers
In June 2025, Indonesia and Türkiye signed a government-to-government framework agreement for the acquisition of 48 KAAN fighter jets, valued at approximately $15 billion.
The formal implementation contract was signed in July 2026, covering technology transfer and the development of local aerospace infrastructure in cooperation with PT Dirgantara Indonesia. Deliveries are scheduled to take place in phases over a ten-year period.
Separately, at IDEF 2025 in Istanbul, Indonesia also signed a contract for two İstif-class frigates from Türkiye, marking the first export of this class of warship outside the country.
Meanwhile, in May 2026, Indonesia and Japan signed a defense cooperation agreement that includes joint defense industry development and opens the possibility of future procurement of Japanese defense equipment.
Limited Budget, Expanding Procurement
According to the April 2026 edition of the SIPRI Military Expenditure Database, Indonesia allocated 1.0 percent of its GDP to military spending in 2025, up from 0.8 percent in 2016. This increase is part of President Prabowo Subianto’s commitment to gradually raise defense spending to 1.5 percent of GDP by 2029, making military modernization a key priority since he took office in October 2024.
Even so, Indonesia’s defense spending remained below that of Singapore (3.0 percent of GDP) and Vietnam (2.2 percent) in the same year.
In an October 2025 analysis, the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) noted that Indonesia’s growing inventory of weapons systems from multiple suppliers creates potential logistical and maintenance bottlenecks. The available budget, meanwhile, may not yet be sufficient to sustain the entire new fleet simultaneously.
The 1.5 percent of GDP target remains some distance from the current level. Until that gap is closed, the mismatch between the scale of procurement and the available budgetary capacity is likely to remain a key challenge for Indonesia’s military modernization efforts.
