Indonesia’s bid to modernize its military’s primary weapons system (alutsista), both to replace aging weaponry and keep up with regional dynamics, took a new turn last week. Early on Tuesday, the United States Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) made a surprise announcement that the US State Department had approved the sale of eight MV-22 Block C Osprey tiltrotor aircraft to Indonesia, as well as the corresponding systems, spare parts and training. The deal is worth approximately US$2 billion. The DSCA’s announcement means that Indonesia had formally sent a request sometime in the past, although it is unclear when or for which service or unit. The announcement came not long after Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto visited Moscow on June 23. Prabowo held talks with Russian Defense Deputy Minister Alexander Formin and attended the Victory Day parade, which ...