The second submarine named KRI Ardadedali-404 was sent to Indonesia, with a delivery ceremony at the Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME), Okpo, South Korea, on Wednesday, following the arrival of the first submarine named KRI Nagapasa-403 in August 2017, and another submarine that is still being assembled in PT PAL Indonesia, Surabaya.
"We will be finishing this one (currently being assembled in Surabaya). Our manpower is trying to build the fifth and sixth submarines on their own," the minister stated.
Under a cooperation agreement between the Indonesian Military and DSME, the joint project of assembling the submarine has been carried out by state-owned shipbuilder PT PAL through a transfer of technology.
The assembling of the KRI Alugoro-405 is expected to be completed in the next few months.
After purchasing three submarines from South Korea, Indonesia still needs to establish two or three other international partnerships before being able to build its own submarines, according to Ryacudu.
In the 1960s, Indonesia had 12 submarines, but the number was reduced to only two before purchasing three submarines from South Korea.
The country currently has five submarines and will continue to increase the number until it reaches at least 12 submarines.
"(The number) will be increased. We will continuously learn to build advanced submarines based on this cooperation (with South Korea)," Ryacudu added.
Reporter: Yashinta Difa Pramudyani
Editor: Bambang Purwanto
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