The two-plus-two meeting will see the first French-Indonesian ministerial-level “political and military consultations”, according to a statement from the French foreign ministry, and will seek to strengthen the two countries’ military cooperation in achieving “shared ambitions”.

Indonesia and France were among the several countries blindsided by the announcement of the Australia-United States-United Kingdom (AUKUS) defense partnership last year, which saw Washington give Canberra the technology for its state-of-the-art nuclear-powered submarines.

France had an existing deal to supply its submarine technology to Australia, but the latter backed out suddenly in favor of procuring the vessels from the US and the UK. Indonesia, meanwhile, is concerned about the lack of prior consultation on contentious technology that could jeopardize national security if deployed in familiar waters.

It now seems that the AUKUS deal has pushed the two sides to work together, observers have noted.

“Bonjour, Paris. I have arrived and will engage in a number of bilateral meetings with our partners in France. [I will] meet my French counterpart [and] engage in a two-plus-two dialogue with the defense minister, Pak Prabowo,” Retno wrote on her official Instagram account on Thursday.

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Among the topics to be raised are expanded cooperation in maritime affairs, the Indo-Pacific region, the Indian Ocean, as well as the geopolitical tensions stemming from Russia’s war in Ukraine, according to the French ministry.

Joint military exercise opportunities, defense technology and industry co-development and the strengthening of relevant legal frameworks will also be broached, it said.

Last year, Retno and French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna met on the sidelines of the Group of 20 Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Bali to strengthen the bilateral relationship, with a particular focus placed on defense and in particular the procurement of 42 French military aircraft.

An initial contract between the Indonesian Defense Ministry and French manufacturer Dassault for the purchase of six Rafale fighter aircraft was inked at the time, as the first step in a US$8.1 billion deal involving the delivery of an additional 36 Rafale jets to Jakarta by 2026.

The visit of the senior Indonesian delegation comes just a week after Indian Prime Minister Narenda Modi’s own trip to Paris, which saw New Delhi secure the procurement of 26 Rafale jets and three Scorpene-class submarines. The agreement is part of India’s bid to build strong alliances amid heightened tensions in the Indo-Pacific and mounting concerns over China’s assertiveness in the Indian Ocean.

The Indo-Pacific, which has become the latest stage for an acute superpower rivalry between the US and China, has seen a spike in military activities and a buildup that many in the region fear could jeopardize peace and security.

Since the scrapped submarine deal with Australia, observers have noted France’s growing interest in finding other strategic defense allies in the Indo-Pacific, where it still governs a number of overseas territories.

In late June, Prabowo flew to Paris to meet with Dassault Aviation CEO Eric Trappier at the 2023 Paris Air Show, where miniatures of the Rafale jets were put on display.

“The Rafale aircraft is an advanced Generation 4.5 military jet. It is equivalent to the US-made F-16 Fighting Falcon and the F-18 Hornet,” Prabowo’s office said at the time.

Read also: Buying Mirage fighter jets is stop-gap solution: Prabowo

Jakarta has been desperately shopping around in a variety of countries in search of new fighter jets to replace its aging fleet, which has been complicated by geopolitical rivalries.

The US has in the past blocked Indonesia’s procurement of Russian Sukhoi jets, while an ongoing co-development scheme with South Korea on the KFX jet prototype is faltering over limited funds and the growing realization that its future delivery may not be enough to cover its bases.

According to national defense procurement targets outlined in the so-called Minimum Essential Forces (MEF), Indonesia must acquire 11 squadrons of jet fighters by 2024.