Indonesia has bought 12 new drones from Turkish Aerospace worth $300 million, Reuters reported on Tuesday, citing the Indonesian defense ministry.
The deal comes after Indonesian President Joko Widodo in July warned his cabinet to maintain a “healthy” budget as he highlighted outsized spending by the country’s security agencies, including the defense ministry.
In January, Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto sealed an $800 million deal to buy 12 Mirage 2000-5 fighter jets, which drew criticism as they were considered too old. Indonesia in February also bought 42 Rafale fighter jets for $8.1 billion, which will be disbursed in phases over several years.
At 134.3 trillion rupiah ($8.89 billion), the defense ministry has the biggest allocation from the country’s total budget this year, according to government data.
The deal with Ankara-based Turkish Aerospace was finalized in February, and the drones are expected to be delivered within 32 months of the signing. It also includes training and flight simulators, the defense ministry said in a statement.