Indonesia rejects claims of U.S. airspace deal

IndonesiaÕs defence minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin has clarified that
Jakarta does not have any commitment with the United States to
provide overflight clearance for its military

May 19, 2026: Sjamsoeddin (right)
says letter signed in April with U.S.
Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth
(far right) created no binding deal
on airspace access

Clarification follows growing
controversy in Indonesia over plan
to give U.S. military unrestricted
overflight permission

IndonesiaÕs foreign ministry has
warned that proposal could risk
entangling Jakarta in potential
South China Sea conflicts

Even limited U.S. military overflight
access via Indonesia would enhance
WashingtonÕs ability to move forces
quickly, across key corridorlinking
Pacific with other theatres

Jakarta
FIR 
Ujung Pandang
FIR 

Jakarta
Makassar

AUSTRALIA
BRUNEI
CAMBODIA
EAST TIMOR
INDONESIA
MALAYSIA
PAPUA
NEW GUINEA
PHILIPPINES
SINGAPORE
THAILAND
VIETNAM

Borneo
Moluccas
Java
Papua
Sulawesi
Sumatra

INDIAN
OCEAN
PACIFIC
OCEAN
South
China Sea

500km
310 miles

Indonesian airspace: Divided into two
Flight Information Regions (FIRs)

Airspace controlled by Singapore

Sources: Antara, Bloomberg, OpsGroup, Reuters, X
Pictures: Getty Images
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