Turkish firm to set up joint defense production facility in Indonesia

Turkish missile maker Roketsan has signed an agreement with Indonesia to establish a joint defense production facility, a top company official announced on Saturday, marking a strategic move in Türkiye’s growing defense industry partnerships.

Speaking at the Antalya Diplomacy Forum (ADF) 2025, Roketsan General Manager Murat Ikinci emphasized that Türkiye’s defense collaborations go beyond mere product sales, offering allied and friendly nations the opportunity to co-develop defense technologies.

“In the upcoming period, we aim to rapidly increase international relations and international collaborations in order to quickly boost the export capacity of the Turkish defense industry,” Ikinci told Anadolu Agency (AA).

“Most recently, we signed a joint production agreement with Indonesia, which we also announced publicly, a project to establish a joint production facility. The president of Indonesia was also here, and we had the opportunity to meet with him directly. Strengthening these relations swiftly is of critical importance for increasing our country’s defense industry exports,” he added.

Ikinci stated that the agreement they signed with the Indonesia-based defense industry company covers the production of anti-ship missiles, cruise missiles and various smart ammunition systems.

Indonesia’s President Prabowo Subianto was welcomed in Ankara this week, where he met President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and also addressed lawmakers at Parliament.

Ikinci explained that the primary goals of the partnership include technology transfer, strengthening the local defense industry infrastructure and training programs for Indonesian engineers and technicians.

Defense industry ‘crown jewel’

The defense industry is seen as one of the primary sectors in boosting Türkiye-Indonesia ties while experts see energy, contracting, health and agriculture sectors as other areas where collaboration would be strengthened.

The visits of Erdoğan to Indonesia in February and recent visit of Indonesian president to Türkiye opened new doors of cooperation.

Businesspeople of the two countries, who came together again during Prabowo’s visit, confirmed their determination to move forward on the course drawn by the presidents to deepen relations further.

Nuri Doğan Karadeniz, head of the Türkiye-Indonesia Business Council of the Foreign Economic Relations Board (DEIK), told AA that trade relations with Indonesia are moving toward the level of $3 billion, and this figure has the potential to reach $10 billion.

“We can say that Indonesia is almost the locomotive of ASEAN countries. Considering its proximity to countries such as China, Malaysia, Singapore and the Philippines, it is an aircraft carrier for us,” he said.

Mentioning Erdoğan’s visit to Indonesia earlier this year, Karadeniz said they have started to achieve good results from their meetings with representatives of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

He said that at this point, the defense industry is the “crown jewel” of the Turkish industrial sector.

“Since Indonesia’s newly elected president was the defense minister earlier, defense cooperation agreements with Türkiye started to sprout for five years and are now in full bloom. Besides, Türkiye’s incredible knowledge and equipment potential in agriculture and hotel management are among the potential cooperation areas. Our contractors are involved in the relocation of the capital Jakarta,” he explained.

“Meanwhile, Indonesia is a serious energy producer and importer. Therefore, there is a great need for Turkish businesspeople in such a dynamic country, especially in renewable and sustainable energies. In general, we expect very serious developments in the rest of this year, 2026 and 2027, which will exceed even our current expectations.”

Karadeniz also said Indonesia is pleased with the achievements of the Turkish defense industry due to both cultural and sectoral similarities between the two nations, and the fact that Jakarta is a reliable partner.

“Weapon technologies that you acquire for the long term in the defense industry should be purchased from reliable countries. Thus, with the trust your suppliers give you, their requirements such as maintenance, repair and ammunition supply, should continue to be met,” he said.

Anindya Novian Bakrie, head of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said the trade volume between Indonesia and Türkiye was not sufficient and should be increased.

“The defense industry can be a good starting point. Because the Turkish defense industry is the best in the world and the right thing to do is to increase trade volume in the defense sector,” he said.

“The contracting sector is also one of the areas where we can work together. The two countries can cooperate in energy, health, digital and many other sectors. The defense industry is Türkiye’s strong point. Indonesia is also strengthening its defense sector. I think the two countries can work very well together.”

Bakrie said Indonesia exports palm oil, as well as steel and many other products and wants to increase exports to Türkiye. He said he also invited Turkish companies to invest in Indonesia.

Emphasizing the importance of the health sector in Indonesia, Bakrie said: “There are many devices we can buy from Türkiye. This increases trade.”

Source: Daily Sabah