Indonesia will trim down the proportion of the US-made military weaponry and equipment in its military to lessen the dependency on the US military industry, the defense minister said in Jakarta on Monday.

Talking to reporters at the parliament building, Minister Juwono Sudarsono said that Indonesia will continue to cut the percentage of the US products from 65 percent now to a figure below 50 percent. In 1998, the figure was 80 percent, he said.

The minister said Indonesia will diversify the source of its weaponry and equipment to other countries. "We reduce (the proportion of the US products) by extending the choice that we have already had," he said after a meeting with the lawmakers at the parliament building.

The minister added should a country control the majority of the weapon supply of another country, it might have a power to impose a ban by seeking the reason of the violation of human rights. "We are now seeking the possibility on scores of countries, we will see their offers," he said.

The United States imposed a ban on the Indonesian military from purchasing spare parts for the Indonesian fighter planes on concerns of the gross human rights violation before and after the United Nations-backed referendum in 1998 in East Timor. The ban was lifted in 2004 followed by the resumption of full military ties of both countries. The embargo had made scores of Indonesian fighter planes not able to operate.

One of the countries being sought to be another supplier of the weaponry and equipment is India, which has an advanced aircraft industry and economy, said the minister. India "has offered products in many sectors, including in electronic, aircraft, and helicopters and guided-missiles," he said.

Indonesia has agreed to spend 1 billion US dollars purchasing weaponry from Russia and reached agreement with Czech to boost defense cooperation.

Chairman of the Commission One in charge of foreign policies of the parliament L. Theo Sambuaga also said that the House supports and encourages the government decision not to rely only on one country and to find out other sources of the arms supply.

"We always push the government to diversify the source of the weaponry," he said at the parliament building.