Indonesia officially received its first aircraft carrier following a delivery ceremony at a naval facility in North Jakarta on Friday. The 180-metre vessel, formerly commissioned by the Italian navy in 1985 and retired in 2014, sailed to Indonesia from Italy via Colombo and the Malacca Strait under the designation Giuseppe Garibaldi before arriving at Tanjung Priok seaport. The ship will be renamed KRI Sriwijaya, taking its name from an ancient Southeast Asian maritime kingdom that dominated the region between the seventh and 13th centuries.
According to Indonesian Navy leadership, the carrier can accommodate up to 830 personnel and transport as much as 18 helicopters. The government has stated the vessel will primarily serve humanitarian and disaster relief functions, given Indonesia’s susceptibility to natural disasters and the need for rapid logistics delivery to remote regions. Military officials noted that the ship could also be deployed for combat operations if circumstances warrant such use.
The acquisition represents part of a broader military modernization initiative under Indonesian leadership. The Finance Ministry allocated $450 million in financing for the aircraft carrier programme in 2025, though some opposition figures have expressed concerns that final costs could exceed official estimates. The vessel was transferred to Indonesia following an agreement negotiated in March, with Italy viewing the donation as a cost-effective alternative to managing the ship’s decommissioning while strengthening bilateral defence ties.
Indonesia has pursued multiple defence partnerships and equipment acquisitions in recent years. The country previously agreed to a substantial purchase of French-made fighter jets and has received commitments for long-range missile systems from India this year. Additionally, Jakarta established a Major Defence Cooperation Partnership with the United States and concluded a security agreement with Australia during the same period.
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