Indonesia confirms bid to buy 100 German tanks

Indonesia's Defence Ministry confirmed Friday the country will buy 100 Leopard II tanks from Germany, a spokesman said.

Parliament has approved the purchase but the pricing was still being negotiated with the German side, Hartind Asrin said.

The tanks are made by Krauss-Maffei Wegmann GmbH & Co KG.

"What is certain is that they are not expensive," Asrin said.

In July, German Chancellor Angela Merkel discussed a possible defence deal with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono in Indonesia.

Indonesia has launched an ambitious plan to modernize its under equipped military and build a strong defence industry.

The government allocated a defence budget of 156 trillion rupiah (16.4 billion dollars) for the 2011-2014 period, allowing it buy hardware such as modern fighter aircraft and submarines.

Krauss-Maffei Wegmann products include armoured vehicles, artillery, bridge-laying equipment and rocket launchers.