Indonesia backtracks on Mirage 2000-5 acquisition

Qatar Emiri Air Force (QEAF) Dassault Mirage 2000-5s (on the far left and far right) operate with QEAF Dassault Rafales and US Air Force Boeing F-15Es over Doha in 2020. The QEAF has since withdrawn its 12 Mirages in service, leading to Indonesia's interest in procuring the fleet. (USAF/Staff Sgt Justin Parsons)

Indonesia has withdrawn from a contract to procure the Qatar Emiri Air Force's (QEAF's) combined force of 12 Dassault Mirage 2000-5 fighter aircraft.

On 15 June 2023 the Indonesian Ministry of Defense (MoD) announced a EUR733 million (USD787 million) contract for the 12 aircraft. However, on 11 February 2024 Dahnil Anzar Simanjuntak, spokesperson for Indonesian Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto, said in a statement that the procurement had been paused.

“The purchase plan for the Mirage 2000-5 fighter jets is temporarily postponed due to fiscal limitations in Indonesia,” Dahnil said, according to local media reports.

Deputy Minister of Defense Lieutenant General Muhammad Herindra (retd) clarified on 12 February that the planned procurement of the 12 Mirage 2000-5s had been “cancelled … due to fiscal or budgetary constraints”.

In January Dahnil said during a television broadcast that the government had “delayed” the purchase because of Jakarta's fiscal capacity. “[This capacity, for] the time being, cannot support such purchase,” he said. At the time, he added that Indonesia would order a retrofit for its existing Sukhoi Su-27SK/SMK and Su-30MK2 and older Lockheed Martin F-16A/B Block 15 fleets instead.

Janes could not reach Dahnil for comment. Janes previously reported that the funding for the acquisition was to be made through a foreign loan approved by the Indonesian finance minister in 2022.