Indonesian officials said they will no longer conduct a search for the missing navy submarine but instead focus on a recovery operation after the Navy changed its situational status to "sub sank" from "sub miss" and declared the vessel sunk and the crew of 53 dead on Saturday.
Several Indonesian officials, including Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawait, have expressed their condolences to the families on social media.
On Twitter, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said he "was incredibly saddened to hear of the tragic loss of the 53 Indonesian sailors on board."
According to military chief Hadi Tjahjanto, fragments from the KRI Nanggala-402 have been recovered by search parties, including debris from inside the stricken vessel whose oxygen supply was already believed to have run out, Reuters reported Sunday.
The exact location of the submarine has not yet been pinpointed, Indonesian Navy Chief of Staff Yudo Margono said during a news conference.
"Over the past few days, we have recovered debris and items from the last location that the submarine was diving," Margono said.
A few pieces of debris believed to be from the Nanggala were presented at the news conference, including prayer mats, part of a torpedo, a bottle of grease, and a piece of metal pipe, the Associated Press said.
Warships, planes, and task forces comprised of hundreds of military personnel have been searching for the ill-fated vessel. Navy officials has said the Nanggala, delivered to Indonesia in 1981, was seaworthy.
Authorities do not believe the Nanggala exploded, but say it likely cracked under heavy pressure from the depth it was at.
The submarine is built to withstand a depth of up to 500 meters below sea level, but experts estimate it dived 100 meters to 200 meters deeper than that.
Singapore, Malaysia, India, Australia, the U.S. and other countries dispatched ships and aircraft to help with what many had hoped would be a rescue mission.
