Malaysia, Thailand to deepen defence cooperation - Hishammuddin

Senior Defence Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein said the MoU, which is expected to be finalised by the end of this year, will among others cement miltary-to-military cooperation, and explore new ares of cooperation such as in defence industries and defence science and technology.

"In view of the extensive military collaboration between Malaysia and Thailand, I proposed the establishment of a MoU in defence cooperation.

"(Thai Defence Minister) Prayuth (Chan o-cha) and I have tasked our senior officials to finalise this MoU before the end of the year," he said in a statement.

He had earlier paid a courtesy call and held a bilateral meeting with Prayuth on the sidelines of the event.

Both the leaders had highlighted the strengthening bilateral defence relations, especially with the three exercises conducted between the Malaysian Armed Forces (MAF) and the Royal Thai Armed Forces (RTARF) this year - which are Air THAMAL, Land THAMAL, and Sea THAMAL.

Hishammuddin also noted that Malaysia and Thailand also participated in the COBRA GOLD, a multilateral exercise co-hosted by Thailand and the United States, this year.

Meanwhile, Hishammuddin said he also took the opportunity to convey to Prayuth that Defence Ministers of Indonesia and Singapore have supported Malaysia's proposal to elevate the Malacca Straits Patrol (MSP) by introducing a Quadrilateral Ministerial Meeting between the participating nations.

"Prayuth welcomed the proposal and looks forward to hosting the Quadrilateral Ministerial Meeting in Thailand later this year," he said.

He added that he and Prayuth also discussed a broad spectrum of regional and international issues regarding the dynamic global security landscape such as the Russia-Ukraine Conflict, Myanmar, and Cross-Strait developments.

Meanwhile, Hishammuddin also witnessed the Participation Contract Handover Ceremony where five companies sealed their commitment to participate - namely Kallman Worldwide, representing the United States Pavilion; Pexpo Services, representing the German Pavilion; Advance Defence System Sdn Bhd; MILDEF International Technologies Sdn Bhd; and Ada Vinci Global Sdn Bhd.

The Senior Defence Minister is scheduled to pay a courtesy call on acting Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwan at the Government House to reinforce and strengthen the close ties between Malaysia and Thailand before concluding his working visit.

Also present were Secretary General of the Ministry of Defence Malaysia (MINDEF) Datuk Seri Muez Abd Aziz, Chief of Defence Force General Tan Sri Affendi Buang, Chief of Royal Malaysian Navy Admiral Tan Sri Mohd Reza Mohd Sany, Deputy Chief of the Royal Malaysian Air Force Lt General Datuk Indera Muhamad Norazlan Aris, and Malaysian Ambassador to Thailand Datuk Jojie Samuel.