Indonesia, China to Build Ammunition and Rocket Factory

RRI.CO.ID, Jakarta – Indonesia's Defense Minister, Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin, said Indonesia and China would continue cooperation in the defense industry, including through joint development and technology transfer. Sjafrie said the cooperation would cover the development and production of ammunition, missiles, and rockets, which could be carried out through the construction of joint production facilities in Indonesia.

“What we have already done is cooperate in an ammunition factory. We will cooperate on missiles, rockets, and so on,” Sjafrie told reporters after attended the second ministerial-level meeting of the Indonesia-China Joint Foreign and Defense Ministers’ Dialogue in Jakarta on Friday, August 21, 2026.

The Minister said China would assist Indonesia in developing defense technologies that have not yet been produced domestically through a technology transfer scheme. He explained that the technology transfer is expected to strengthen Indonesia’s capacity to develop an independent defense industry.

“What I emphasized is how the PRC can carry out technology transfer to Indonesia, which also wants to develop military technologies similar to those already developed by the PRC,” he said.

Sjafrie added that the cooperation would use a joint development scheme. One of the Indonesian parties involved would be state-owned defense company PT Pindad.

He said the cooperation is expected to begin no later than 2027. “At the latest, it will be underway in 2027. We will cooperate through joint development. With Pindad, definitely Pindad,” he said.

In addition to the defense industry, Indonesia and China are also developing cooperation in military exercises. Sjafrie said the joint exercise being developed for 2026 is Happy Garuda, which is planned to take place around September and October. The exercise is said to have a concept similar to Garuda Shield, which is scheduled for September.

He explained that the exercises would also include training, personnel exchanges, and capacity building, both at the individual and overall levels.