Russia has formally requested permission to base aircraft on Indonesian soil.

The request, Janes reported on this, citing sources within the Ministry of Defense of Indonesia, suggests the deployment of long-range aircraft in eastern Indonesia, specifically at the Manuhua Air Force Base, located in the country’s easternmost province.

The media notes that the request was sent following a meeting between Prabowo Subianto, Indonesia’s Minister of Defense, and Sergei Shoigu, Secretary of the Russian Security Council, in February 2025.

The Manuhua Air Force Base, which shares a runway with Frans Kaisiepo International Airport, is the base for CN235 transport aircraft of the 27th Air Squadron, as well as the recently formed 9th Air Wing of the Indonesian Air Force.

Meanwhile, Australian Defense Minister Richard Marles held a conversation with his Indonesian counterpart, Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin, who, for his part, denied any requests from Russia.

According to Minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin, the information that Russian aircraft may be based in Indonesia is untrue.

For his part, the Australian Defense Minister emphasized that his country does not wish to see Russia’s military presence in the region, including deploying Russian aircraft and ships.

“We do not want a presence, a military presence, from Russia in our region, which would be destabilising for south-east Asia, and it would certainly be a very different calculation for the risks that are posed to our country in a period that is very uncertain,” Dutton shared.

Meanwhile, the Australian government believes that such a request did indeed take place, as relations between Russia and Indonesia remain quite warm. Previously, Indonesia had shown interest in purchasing Russian Su-35 fighter jets, though it later abandoned the idea.

Indonesia and Russia expressed their intention to strengthen defense cooperation during a meeting between Indonesian Defense Minister Sjahfri Samsuddin and Russian Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu in February 2025.

This meeting took place shortly after Indonesia, the largest economy in Southeast Asia, was admitted as a full member of BRICS. It is worth noting that Russia is one of the founding members of this group.

Militarnyi previously reported that Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto has expressed interest in joining the development of Turkey’s fifth-generation KAAN fighter jet and a new submarine program.