More trouble to China, US as France is eager to sell Rafale fighter jets to India’s friend, Macron giving special treatment to…,

After a deal with India, France is now trying to sell Rafale fighter jets to another nation. And for that Emmanuel Macron, President of France is leaving no stone unturned to placate the country’s premier.

India and France had formally concluded an Inter-Governmental Agreement (IGA), valued at nearly ₹64,000 crore, to procure 26 Rafale-M fighter jets for the Indian Navy. Deliveries are set to begin from mid-2028 and likely to be completed by 2030.

Which is the country?

Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto has been given a special welcome and hospitality at the Bastille Day celebrations in France. The Indonesian President is currently in Paris and is scheduled to meet several EU leaders. France’s aim is to make President Prabowo Subianto’s visit special and strengthen defence ties with Indonesia and lay the foundation for the Rafale deal. Indonesia has signed an agreement to purchase 42 Rafale fighter jets and two French submarines.

Why Indonesia wants to buy the Rafael?

Indonesia, South East Asia’s largest economy, in the face of challenges from China is to buy more aircrafts from France. Indonesia, like India, has also been a leader of the Non-Aligned Movement. In such a situation, while on the one hand Indonesia is troubled by the increasing pressure of China in the South China Sea, on the other hand it does not want to align itself with any one bloc. In such a situation, the defense deal with France is of double benefit for Indonesia. On the one hand it gets advanced fighter planes, and on the other hand it can strengthen its security by staying away from American pressure. When French President Emmanuel Macron visited Indonesia in May, the two countries signed a preliminary defense agreement, which could lead to new orders for French military equipment including Rafale and Scorpene submarines.

What are the risks involved? 

But Indonesia is also looking for a middle ground in the confrontation with China. In November 2024, China and Indonesia signed an agreement that analysts say explicitly recognizes China’s ‘nine-dash line’ and therefore China’s territorial claims over the sea. The ‘nine dash line’ refers to the nine lines that China has unilaterally and arbitrarily drawn on the map to claim more than 90 percent of the South China Sea and its islands.

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