Morning Edition · Tuesday, July 7, 2026

Modi and Prabowo Deepen India-Indonesia Ties With Missiles and Payment Links

The two governments advanced a defense and trade partnership spanning BrahMos missiles, port connectivity and cross-border digital payments.

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Modi and Prabowo Deepen India-Indonesia Ties With Missiles and Payment Links

Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto said closer cooperation between Indonesia and India, two of Asia's largest democracies, is key to regional stability, Antara reported, as Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi opened a state visit in Jakarta. The two leaders advanced a partnership to connect India's Andaman and Nicobar Islands with Indonesia's Sabang port, a project that would strengthen maritime links across the eastern Indian Ocean, according to Antara.

Defense is a central part of the partnership. India's supply of BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles to Indonesia is in its final stages, following a similar deal already signed with Vietnam, Indian Defense Secretary R.K. Singh said in remarks reported by The Hindu. Indian coverage of the visit reported around twenty agreements spanning defense, critical minerals such as nickel, and a link between the two countries' digital payment systems.

The visit illustrates a broader realignment. Middle-sized economies of the Global South are building direct ties with one another in defense, trade and finance that do not run through the traditional Western-centered order. For India, exporting weapons and payment technology extends its influence in Southeast Asia. For Indonesia, diversifying partners reduces dependence on any single power as competition between larger states intensifies.

Part of a tracked trend

South-South Blocs and a Multipolar Order

Large developing economies increasingly build defense, trade and payment ties directly with one another, forming parallel networks that dilute Western and Chinese leverage and advance a more multipolar order.

Veracity: Corroborated

88/100

If true, who benefits: India gains an arms-export market and strategic reach near the Strait of Malacca, and Indonesia gains diversification away from dependence on any single power.
The nuance: The BrahMos deal was in fact signed during the visit rather than only in its final stages, while the payment link remains an unimplemented memorandum whose take-up is untested.

An open-source-intelligence read of how likely this story is true with its real nuance, not a judgment of any outlet. It assesses the claim, weighing independent and adversarial reporting. How we label confidence.

What this means

The strengthening of direct ties among large developing economies in arms, minerals and payments is building a network of relationships that operates outside the established Western order. India's emergence as a weapons exporter and payment-technology partner signals a more multipolar Indo-Pacific where middle powers balance their relations between Washington and Beijing rather than aligning fully with either.

What to watch

Completion of the Indonesia BrahMos deal, which would confirm India as a growing arms supplier to Southeast Asian states wary of China.
Progress on the India-Indonesia payment link, an indicator of whether South-South financial channels gain real usage.
How Beijing responds to expanding Indian defense sales in its neighborhood, a measure of rising regional competition.

Observations to monitor, not financial advice.

3 sources

Synthesized from: Antara (Indonesia) · The Hindu · Antara (Indonesia)