Indonesia gets first aircraft carrier, sparks debate over cost & military ambitions

Indonesia celebrated the arrival of its first aircraft carrier on Friday, a 41-year-old former Italian Navy vessel named ITS Giuseppe Garibaldi. The ship arrived at North Jakarta's Tanjung Priok port after a journey from Italy via the Suez Canal, the Red Sea, Colombo, and the Malacca Strait. President Prabowo Subianto's government has decided to modernize the aging military and position the ship as a platform for disaster response. The carrier will be renamed KRI Sriwijaya next week.

The Indonesian Navy Chief of Staff, Muhammad Ali, stated that the ship would prove particularly useful in a country frequently hit by natural disasters. He emphasized the need for a vessel that could carry many helicopters to quickly drop logistics in remote areas. Ali added that the ship's condition is still very good, and it could potentially serve the Indonesian Navy for the next 15 to 20 years.

The 180-meter vessel is capable of carrying helicopters and short-takeoff, vertical-landing aircraft, and can accommodate hundreds of personnel. President Prabowo has said that Indonesia plans to refurbish the carrier for helicopter and drone operations rather than using it primarily as a conventional carrier for fighter jets. He emphasized that this would greatly help the country's disaster response efforts.

However, the acquisition of the aircraft carrier has sparked debates over its cost, operational requirements, and Indonesia's broader military ambitions. The finance ministry approved $450 million in financing for the carrier program in 2025. Lawmaker TB Hasanuddin estimated that retrofitting alone could cost about 16 trillion rupiah ($900 million).

Critics, like Muhammad Fauzan Malufti of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, argue that the acquisition should be based on operational needs and Indonesia's ability to sustain the vessel. Malufti stated that the benefits should not be outweighed by the costs.