Jakarta buys the Garibaldi aircraft carrier for ‘non-war’ military operations
A billion-dollar deal between Fincantieri and the Indonesian holding company Republikorp. A confirmation of President Prabowo's investments in defense and the army, which goes hand in hand with operations abroad such as sending soldiers to Gaza. The vessel will be used for rescue and emergency response operations, but it will also be able to carry armed drones.
Jakarta (AsiaNews) - A decision that has no ‘invasive intent’, let alone offensive, as the Jakarta government is quick to point out, but which is nevertheless of strategic importance because it makes Indonesia the second country in Southeast Asia - after Thailand - to own an aircraft carrier.
Amid clarifications and distinctions, an agreement has been reached in recent weeks to sell the Giuseppe Garibaldi - a historic vessel previously used by the Italian navy - to the Asian nation for a total of hundreds of millions of dollars.
The Ministry of Defense emphasizes that the vessel will not be used for combat, but rather for military “emergency and rescue” operations in the event of disasters or to support non-warfare operations.
The 180-meter-long aircraft carrier is equipped with radar jammers and weapons such as anti-aircraft missiles, has a maximum speed of 30 knots, and can travel up to 7,000 nautical miles. The sale is the result of negotiations between Italy's Fincantieri and the Indonesian defense holding company Republikorp.
"Our nation has no intention of taking an aggressive stance by owning an aircraft carrier... Therefore, there is no invasive intent,“ Rico Ricardo Sirat, head of the Defense Ministry's information office, said yesterday, as quoted by Kompas. The senior official added that it will be used in military operations outside the war zone, particularly ”in disaster relief."
Across the Asian continent, only China, India, and Japan currently have domestically produced aircraft carriers. The Giuseppe Garibaldi is considered part of President Prabowo Subianto's broader push to modernize the Indonesian armed forces and expand their capabilities, an initiative he launched during his tenure as defense minister from 2019 to 2024.
This includes strengthening the entire military apparatus and deploying forces abroad, including Gaza, where Jakarta is ready to send thousands of soldiers according to the peace plan drawn up by US President Donald Trump.
However, the decision to acquire the aircraft carrier—which served in the Italian navy from 1985 to 2024 and is now decommissioned—was only taken after his election as president at the end of 2024. The vessel is expected to arrive on the eve of the Indonesian Armed Forces' anniversary on October 5.
Previously, on February 6, Indonesian Navy Chief of Staff Muhammad Ali said the aircraft carrier would be used primarily for humanitarian missions.
Under the agreement, the senior officer continued, Jakarta would bear the costs of returning the decommissioned ship to operational condition, allocating a budget for modernization or system upgrades, safety standards, and the operational requirements of the Indonesian Navy.
The overall plan also includes funding for the acquisition of helicopters optimized for the aircraft carrier, worth approximately billion, according to the defense and security news platform Defense Security Asia.
Analysts and experts interviewed by CNA explain that Indonesia's geography, a vast archipelago with numerous waterways and busy passageways, justifies the need for an aircraft carrier, but limitations such as the lack of vertical take-off aircraft limit its combat role.
The ship was designed primarily to accommodate helicopters, jets, and propeller aircraft capable of vertical landing, such as the Harrier or the MV22 Osprey. However, it could also be adapted to deploy drones for various purposes, including the transport of lethal cargo, with agreements on the table with Turkish industry giant Bayraktar.
Khairul Fahmi, from the think tank Institute for Security and Strategic Studies (ISESS), explains that drones can also be used for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance missions; they would also be very useful in combating illegal fishing, smuggling, or violations of maritime borders and economic zones.
However, some experts have noted that the size and operating costs of an aircraft carrier could put a strain on Jakarta's finances, which are already under pressure from Prabowo's ambitious social, economic, and defense programs.
According to Defense Security Asia, the annual cost of operating the aircraft carrier could range from million to million. Finally, Abdul Rahman Yaacob, a researcher at the Rabdan Security and Defense Institute in Abu Dhabi, said that aircraft carriers such as the Garibaldi and the Chakri Naruebet, flagship of the Royal Thai Navy, are not ideal for disaster relief.
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26/04/2017 10:35
03/12/2010
