Indonesia revokes ex-marine's citizenship over Russian service

A former Indonesian Marine Corps soldier has lost his Indonesian citizenship after deserting and joining Russia's military operations, according to Law Minister Supratman Andi Agtas.

Speaking at his office in Jakarta on Wednesday, Agtas noted that his ministry's Directorate General of Legal Administration would coordinate with the Foreign Affairs Ministry to formalize the citizenship revocation.

"The plan for now is to coordinate with the Indonesian ambassador in Russia to inform the person in question that his citizenship has been automatically annulled by law," he stated.

Supratman emphasized that any Indonesian soldier wishing to participate in military operations of another country must first obtain a permit from the president.

The minister noted that Satria Arta Kumbara failed to meet this requirement and instead unilaterally enlisted in Russia's military, abandoning his duty as a marine in the Indonesian Navy (TNI-AL).

"The absence of a permit equals automatic withdrawal of citizenship," he reiterated.

Kumbara went viral on the social media platform TikTok after a video uploaded by the account @zstorm689 showed two images of the same man —one in a TNI-AL uniform and another in Russian military attire.

The caption claimed the man was a former Marine Corps soldier now fighting for Russia in the ongoing war in Ukraine. The account also uploaded two other videos showing footage of him working alongside Russian soldiers.

The TNI-AL then confirmed that the man in the videos was indeed its former soldier, who had served at the Inspectorate of the Marine Corps and was discharged on April 6, 2023, following a trial at the Jakarta Military Court II-08.

"The verdict involved a one-year prison term and dismissal," Head of TNI-AL's Information Center, Commodore Wira, told the media in Jakarta on Saturday (May 10).

He remarked that Kumbara, who held the rank of second sergeant, had deserted his post on June 13, 2022.