ABSTRACT
After the United States (US) arms embargo against Indonesia in 1999–2005, there have been efforts to meet the objective of arms autarky, or self-sufficiency, by re-establishing the Indonesia’s domestic defense industry. The government has issued Law No. 16/2012 on Defense Industry and subsequent legislations to regulate the development of the domestic defense industry to meet demands of defense and security equipment (Alpalhankam). Challenges remain in Indonesia’s arms procurements that can prevent the aspiration of defense industry autarky. This research aims to address military and politico-security issues in Indonesia’s Alpalhankam procurements during the decade after the embargo was lifted (2005–2015) by using qualitative method. The analysis shows that Indonesia’s threat perceptions during this period have increased, raising the need for major conventional weapon systems. The research also finds that the strategy of supplier diversification has prevented the dependence on a predominant arms supplier. Despite this fact, the relations between the TNI and the domestic defense industry remain challenging. The TNI as the Alpalhankam user still perceives domestic industry players less capable than foreign suppliers, whilst domestic defense industry complains about uncertainties in arms procurement, research and development difficulties due to high capital, and regulatory inconsistencies.
