Prabowo Says He Blocked Plans to Sell Three Strategic State-Owned Defense Firms

SUARA NEGERI ■ LOMBOK — President Prabowo Subianto said he had blocked plans to sell three of Indonesia's strategic state-owned defense companies to foreign parties, including PT PAL Indonesia, PT Pindad, and PT Dirgantara Indonesia (PTDI).

Prabowo made the remarks while inaugurating the Meninting Dam in West Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara, on Friday.

"Many companies were once planned to be sold to foreign parties. I stopped it. They wanted to sell the defense industry PT PAL, PT Pindad, and PT Dirgantara Indonesia. We revived them," Prabowo said in a speech.

He said his administration had prioritized strengthening Indonesia's domestic defense industry as part of broader efforts to achieve economic self-reliance and maintain national control over strategic assets.

Prabowo, however, did not specify when the proposed sales were made, who had put forward the plans, or whether any official documents existed to support his claim. As of publication, the government had not issued additional details explaining the background of the president's remarks.

PT PAL Indonesia, PT Pindad, and PT Dirgantara Indonesia are among Indonesia's key state-owned defense manufacturers. The three companies are members of Defend ID, the state-owned defense industry holding company established to enhance production capacity and strengthen the competitiveness of Indonesia's strategic defense sector.

Following the inauguration ceremony at the Meninting Dam in Bukit Tinggi Village, Gunungsari District, West Lombok, Prabowo greeted local residents. He was accompanied by Coordinating Minister for Infrastructure and Regional Development Agus Harimurti Yudhoyono, Agriculture Minister Andi Amran Sulaiman, Public Works Minister Dody Hanggodo, and Coordinating Minister for Food Affairs Zulkifli Hasan.