Indonesia will pay 30% of its contribution to develop the South Korean KF-21 fighter jet in the form of barter as per an agreement thrashed out Wednesday in Jakarta between the relevant organizations of the two countries.
Jakarta seeks a 20 percent share in the $6.7 billion project under which it will receive a prototype and technology to manufacture over 50 aircraft in Indonesia. The Southeast Asian nation has fallen back on its milestone contributions amidst rumours that it was backing out of the project.
“Indonesia will make payments over the next five years until 2026, and thirty percent of that would be in-kind transfers,” South Korea’s Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) said in a statement after the agreement-signing ceremony.
DAPA said the two countries will further discuss at a separate meeting what goods to be bartered instead of cash.
In the past Indonesia has proposed 50% barter for buying Russian Su-35 fighter jets. The deal has gone gone cold after an in-principle agreement was signed in 2018.
Indonesia re-affirmed it commitment to continue in the KF-X fighter jet project in April this year during the formal roll-out of the project which was christened as ‘KF-21 Boramae.’
In the strongest-ever indication that Jakarta is staying in the project, 32 Indonesian technicians have been sent to Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) facilities since April to work alongside Korean engineers. This number is expected to rise to 100 by December to impart necessary skills to absorb technology and later build the plane in Indonesia.
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