U.S., Indonesia meet to strengthen submarine force relationship

Michael Fabey, Aviation Week Intelligence Network
21 April 2015


U.S. Navy Rear Adm. William R. Merz, Commander, Submarine Group 7 (COMSUBGRU 7), met with representatives from the Indonesian submarine force in Surabaya, Indonesia, earlier this month to strengthen a working relationship between the two navies, U.S. Navy officials say.
The primary focus of the staff talks was to establish routine periodic regional engagements and operations to integrate the Indonesian submarine force as a partner and ally in the Pacific.
The engagements will include training opportunities between the two navies that will focus on integrating U.S. and Indonesian submarine force capabilities.
The staff talks followed a tabletop Simulated Submarine Casualty Exercise (SMASHEX), where COMSUBGRU 7, U.S. Navy Submarine Rescue Command, and the International Submarine Escape and Rescue Liaison Office worked with the Indonesian navy during a simulated submarine rescue training.
The nation holds its own Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training (Carat) exercise with the U.S. and other naval forces.
The Indonesian navy is the largest navy in Southeast Asia based on the number of active personnel and ships.
AMI International has identified the country as one of the top five in the area for amphibious ship purchasing in the coming two decades, while Indonesia ranks among the top Asia-Pacific navies in terms of the number of ships, according to an Aviation Week Intelligence Network (AWIN) analysis of data provided by Avascent Analytics , an online market analysis toolkit for global defense programs
Indonesian military officials have voiced their support of the U.S. Asia-Pacific rebalance.