President Joe Biden's administration approved nearly $14 billion worth of
arms sales to the Indonesian government, as the United States continues to
move forward with steps it believes will help counter China's escalating
behavior in the Indo-Pacific.
The US State Department announced the sale of a $13.9 billion
state-of-the-art fighter jet while Secretary of State Antony Blinken visits
Australia.
His visit was also meant to underscore the United States' determination not
to allow China to freely control the Pacific region, even as developments
between Russia and Ukraine demand attention.
The arms sale to Indonesia of up to 36 F-15 fighter jets, engines and
related equipment, including munitions and communications systems, followed
a mid-December trip to Jakarta by Blinken, who at the time praised close
US-Indonesian ties despite human rights concerns. which had delayed previous
arms sales to the country.
"This proposed sale will support the foreign policy goals and national
security goals of the United States by enhancing the security of an
important regional partner who is a force for political stability, and
economic progress in the Asia-Pacific region," the US State Department said
in a statement.
"It is in the US national interest to assist Indonesia in developing and
maintaining a strong and effective self-defense capability," he said as
quoted by AP, Friday (11/2/2022).
The statement did not mention China but successive US administrations have
sought to enlist Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim-majority
democracy, in its campaign to counter China's efforts to increase its
influence in the South China Sea and elsewhere in the Pacific.
Indonesia hosts the headquarters of the Association of Southeast Asian
Nations (ASEAN), whose members are struggling to deal with China's movement
into disputed areas in the South China Sea, which is a major international
shipping lane.
US military sales to Indonesia, however, were under scrutiny and delayed
previously due to human rights concerns. But those issues were not mentioned
in the State Department statement.