US Mulls Over Indonesia’s Military Drones Purchase

13 November 2021

MQ-1C Gray Eagles UCAV (photo : Intelligence Aerospace)

The Indonesian government is considering military drones purchase from the United States. But, the State Department is still deliberating due to concerns about human rights abuses.

Indonesia wants to advance the country’s armada of maturing fighter planes. It plans to buy new planes from South Korea, Russia, France, and the US. The government requested to buy MQ-1C Gray Eagle drones.

MQ-1C Gray Eagles UCAV (photo : General Atomics)

To Sell or Not To Sell Military Drones

The White House and the State Department have been collaborating for months about a new arms transfer policy. It aims to lay a renewed priority on human rights and safeguarding civilians. It’s an analysis that could perplex some pending arrangements with countries with a history of abuses.

The analysis, together with the Qatar and Indonesia requests of military drones delivered export created a more significant debate in the Biden administration. It includes countries that must be able to get US help.

The Common Sensor Payload found on the MQ-1 Predator (photo : USAF)

Both Indonesia and Qatar used to have histories of human rights abuses. A few US diplomats are reluctant to transfer armaments that can turn to civilians in the long run.

It’s also dubious if Indonesia can accurately regulate processes to foster U.S.-made technology. Another things is, if the local government can sustain high-end technology for a long time. The country’s request for Gray Eagle military drones pervaded since Trump’s last year administration.

Another concern is, when Indonesia buys a drone that can carry missiles. Although the US won’t arm it, the said Asian country could buy missiles from China or Russia. There was a report in April that Jakarta bought air-to-surface AR-2 missiles to equip its Chinese-made CH-4 drones.

See full article AseanEconomist