KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 13 (Bernama) -- Malaysia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) signed a defence cooperation memorandum of understanding (MoU), marking yet another important milestone in bilateral strategic ties.
The MoU was signed by Defence Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin during a bilateral meeting with UAE National Minister for Defence Affairs Mohamed Mubarak Fadhel AlMazrouei in Abu Dhabi recently.
Mohamed Khaled said that the MoU would expand the scope of defence cooperation in a comprehensive manner, in line with the aspirations of both countries to build stronger, modern and far-sighted diplomatic defence relations.
“Under this MoU, Malaysia and UAE state their joint commitment to among other things, encourage joint defence research, explore defence products and develop new capabilities for our mutual benefit.
“This MoU will also serve as an important bridge to kickstart industry engagement, especially in identifying fields of shared focus and potential high-impact projects that can be commercialised to improve the defence industry ecosystem in both countries,” he said.
Mohamed Khaled is in Abu Dhabi for a two-day working visit that began on Thursday and is joined by Defence Ministry (MINDEF) deputy secretary-general (Policy) Mohd Yani Daud, Armed Forces chief of staff Lt Gen Datuk Azhan Md Othman and MINDEF Policy and Strategic Planning Division Undersecretary Datuk Muhammad Ammir Haron.
He also shared that Malaysia and the UAE were committed to boosting military training coordination and sharing expertise, including joint training initiatives that can improve readiness, interoperability and capabilities of both country’s forces.
“It is hoped that the MoU will open a new chapter in Malaysia-UAE defence cooperation - stronger, complementary and peace-oriented for regional and general stability,” he said.
The UAE also acknowledged the strong ties with Malaysia and welcomed the participation of Malaysian companies to work with EDGE Group, a UAE-government owned technology and defence conglomerate, he said.
“I also had the opportunity to present the country’s capabilities in semiconductor and aerospace components, which has the potential of supporting the supply chain of EDGE Group military products in the future.
“Both parties also agreed to continue to improve information sharing, human capital development, defence cooperation and development of new initiatives for our mutual benefit,” he said.
Mohamed Khaled also said that Malaysia had received positive response to its proposal of a collaboration of training Royal Malaysian Navy officers onboard the UAE Gowind-class ships in preparation to operate Malaysian LCS vessels that use the same technology.
During his visit, Mohamed Khaled also stopped by the Malaysian embassy in UAE, where he was welcomed by Ambassador Tengku Datuk Sirajuzzaman Tengku Mohamed Ariffin and embassy staff.
“I express my appreciation to the commitment shown in improving Malaysia-UAE ties, including in the aspect of defence, which is vital to both countries.
“Besides ensuring the interest of Malaysians abroad, our embassies play a role in improving defence diplomacy and to support the national security agenda,” he added.
-- BERNAMA
BERNAMA provides up-to-date authentic and comprehensive news and information which are disseminated via BERNAMA Wires; www.bernama.com; BERNAMA TV on Astro 502, unifi TV 631 and MYTV 121 channels and BERNAMA Radio on FM93.9 (Klang Valley), FM107.5 (Johor Bahru), FM107.9 (Kota Kinabalu) and FM100.9 (Kuching) frequencies.
Follow us on social media :
Facebook : @bernamaofficial, @bernamatv, @bernamaradio
Twitter : @bernama.com, @BernamaTV, @bernamaradio
Instagram : @bernamaofficial, @bernamatvofficial, @bernamaradioofficial
TikTok : @bernamaofficial
