Tokyo’s naval export drive gains strategic depth in Southeast Asia
In November 2025, the Indonesian Minister of Defence reviewed the FFM Kumano, a Mogami-class frigate. (Photo: Ministry of Defence of the Republic of Indonesia)
Indonesia’s consideration of Mogami-class frigates points to a widening export opportunity for Tokyo across Southeast Asia and raises the prospect of the Mogami becoming the region’s default mid-tier surface combatant.
Japan’s first-ever export of a major surface combatant to Australia has barely had time to settle before a second Indo-Pacific market is signalling interest. Indonesia is now actively reviewing an offer for Mogami-class frigates.
Academic analysis of Indonesian naval procurement under President Joko Widodo’s 2014–2024 administration, published in the journal ‘Asian Affairs’, found that Jakarta consistently bought only two or three ships from each of several different countries rather than concentrating its orders, leaving the navy operating warships from at least eight different nations simultaneously. That fragmentation has produced a logistically complex fleet, but it has also kept every
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