April 17, 2025 | 07:55 pm
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Indonesia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has addressed Russia’s request to access an Indonesian Air Force base in Papua.
Spokesperson Rolliansyah Soemirat, also known as Roy, firmly stated that Indonesia has never authorized any foreign nation, including Russia, to use or access military facilities belonging to the Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI).
“Indonesia has never given any country permission to build or possess a military base on its territory,” Roy emphasized in an official statement issued on Wednesday night, April 16, 2025.
Roy stated that Indonesia is committed to maintaining the principle of active non-alignment. He also emphasized that Indonesia will only accept and allow military aircraft or vessels from other countries for peaceful missions to visit Indonesia.
Furthermore, Roy revealed that Indonesia has plans to build a satellite launch site in Biak. "Discussions on this matter have been ongoing for several years, but no decision has been made yet," he said.
Separately, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Arif Havas Oegroseno mentioned that the issue of Russia's military base opening has also caught the attention of the Ministry of Defense. He referred the media to inquire about the details of the issue.
"Our foreign policy is clearly non-aligned. We do not belong to any military bloc," said Arif when interviewed by journalists during the commemoration of the 70th Anniversary of the Asia-Africa Conference at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) Auditorium in Jakarta on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.
Arif explained that so far, Indonesia has only engaged in military cooperation with other countries without granting permission for the opening of military bases.
Prior to this, the United States' website, Janes, released a report titled Indonesia mulls options after Russia seeks access to air force base on Monday, April 14, 2025.
In the Janes report, Indonesia received an official request from Moscow regarding permission to place Russian Air Force (VKS) aircraft at a facility in Indonesia's easternmost province.
In relation to this, sources from the Indonesian government confirmed to Janes that the request was accepted by the office of Minister of Defense Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin after meeting with Secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation Sergei Shoigu in February 2025.
In the document received by Janes regarding the request, Russia sought to place several long-range aircraft at the Manuhua Air Force Base, which shares the runway with Frans Kaisiepo Airport.
The airbase is located in the Biak Numfor Regency in Papua and serves as the headquarters of the Indonesian Air Force's 27th Aviation Squadron operating CN235 reconnaissance aircraft.
The Janes report was also responded to by Australia. Australian Minister of Defense Richard Marles said that his government has been "communicating" with Indonesia regarding the report.
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong stated that they are seeking further information from the Indonesian government.
"We as a government have reached out to confirm those reports and to understand whether or not those reports are accurate and what the status of those requests from Russia are," said Wong, as quoted by ABC Australia.
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