- Air chief underscores Pak-Indonesia longstanding brotherhood.
- Sidhu awarded Indonesian Air Force’s medal of honour: ISPR.
- High-level meetings focused on security, defence capability.
Pakistan Air Force (PAF) Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal Zaheer Ahmed Baber Sidhu called on President Prabowo Subianto during his official visit to Indonesia, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said on Friday.
During the meeting, the air chief underscored the shared values and longstanding brotherhood between Pakistan and Indonesia, as per the military’s media wing.
President Prabowo expressed keen interest in leveraging PAF’s state-of-the-art training ecosystem and aerospace development infrastructure to enhance Indonesia’s defence capabilities, it added.
Earlier, Air Chief Sidhu held separate high-level meetings with Defence Minister Lieutenant General (retd) Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin, Commander of the Indonesian National Armed Forces and Indonesian Air Marshal. He was accorded guard of honour at all venues.
During the discussion with the Indonesian air chief, both sides discussed enhanced air force-to-air force cooperation, joint training from basic to advanced levels, professional exchanges, and collaboration in emerging aerospace domains.
The Indonesian air chief sought the PAF’s support in advancing operational and flying training, acknowledging PAF’s rich combat experience.
Air Chief Marshal Sidhu was conferred the Medal of Honour, the highest award of the Indonesian Air Force, in recognition of his role in strengthening bilateral air power cooperation.
Sidhu also held a joint meeting with the Indonesian defence minister and chief of defence forces, where a wide range of defence and security matters were discussed.
The Indonesian leadership appreciated PAF’s professionalism, modernisation drive, and lauded the advanced technological infrastructure of the National Aerospace Science & Technology Park (NASTP).
The development came a month after Indonesia’s defence minister met Pakistan’s air force chief in Islamabad to discuss a potential deal that includes the sale of combat jets and killer drones to Jakarta, Reuters had reported citing three security officials with knowledge of the meeting.
“The meeting focused on discussing general defence cooperation relations, including strategic dialogue, strengthening communication between defence institutions, and opportunities for mutually beneficial cooperation in various fields in the long term,” defence ministry spokesperson Brigadier General Rico Ricardo Sirait had told Reuters, adding the talks had not yet led to concrete decisions.
Interest in the Pakistani military’s weapons development programme has surged since its jets were deployed in a short conflict with India last year.
The four-day war in May last year between the two nuclear-armed nations saw Pakistan downing multiple Indian fighter jets, including French-made Rafale aircraft.
