BrahMos deal signed, PM Modi and Prabowo discuss rare earth supply chain, Indo-Pacific peace

India and Indonesia on Tuesday signed agreements for the sale of BrahMos missiles and strengthening critical mineral and rare earth elements' supply chains.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi described these agreements as significant for sustainable supply chains. He is on a visit to Jakarta in the first stop of his three-nation tour that would later take him to Australia and New Zealand.

"A significant agreement has also been reached to further strengthen supply chains in the critical minerals and steel sectors. New partnerships are being forged between our companies regarding stainless steel and rare-earth magnets," said Modi.

Both leaders also discussed issues of global and multilateral interest and reaffirmed their shared commitment to peace and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific, the Indian readout of Modi's meeting with Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto said.

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In their talks, Modi and Prabowo also discussed trade and investment, defence and security, maritime cooperation, energy, healthcare and pharma, space, critical minerals and rare earths, culture, tourism, and people-to-people exchanges.

The two sides signed at least 15 memorandums of understanding (MoUs) that span several sectors, such as safety and security, space cooperation, defence, supply chains, and healthcare.

India & Indonesia tackle dual Chinese challenge

With BrahMos missiles and collaboration on rare earth elements, India and Indonesia also took a step towards tackling Chinese designs for the region.

Indonesia and China have a tense relationship as the Communist Party of China (CPC) maintains territorial claims in the South China Sea.

While India arming Indonesia serves adds to deterrence against Chinese adventurism, collaboration on rare earths seeks to tackle China's weaponisation of rare earths. China controls the production of around 90 per cent of the world's rare earths and has weaponised the supply over the past year to force countries, such as the United States, into striking one-sided deals.

In the wake of such overt weaponisation, countries are joining hands to secure rare earth supplies outside of Chinese control.

Earlier this year, Indonesia announced that it had identified eight mining blocks with large potential for rare earth elements. It said it had planned to launch two research projects to develop rare earth processing technology.

Here are all the MoUs that were signed