The search for the missing Malaysia Airlines (MAS) aircraft, MH370, will be continued using private assets leased by the government.

According to armed forces chief, Gen Tan Sri Zulkifeli Mohd Zin, the search will be conducted with sonar-equipped vessels via cooperation with China and Australia.

He said, the Defence Ministry would only observe the search operations, and if there are any new discoveries, only then would military assets would be deployed.

“The ministry can only observe the search because we don’t have specialised assets for such an operation, thus we have to pay. The Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN) will also be observing the search. Only if there’s a new discovery that military assets will be deployed for recovery purposes.”

Zulkifeli was speaking to newsmen at a ‘buka puasa’ do with army officers at the Desa Pahlawan camp here on Thursday.

He said, the search operations would still be focused on the southern Indian Ocean.

On Wednesday, it was reported that three vessels involved in the current Phase One of the search operation for the missing flight MH370 have left the search location in the Indian Ocean, but two of them will return.

READ: MH370: One vessel quits search, two others pause to resupply

GO Phoenix ceased the deep-sea operation on June 20, with its contract reported to have ended.

The other two vessels, Fugro Discovery and Fugro Equator, meanwhile left the area for routine port visits to resupply.

On June 20, Transport Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai had said Phase One of the MH370 search mission involving 60,000 sq km of the Indian Ocean will be completed by the end of this month.

READ: Liow: First phase of MH370 search mission ends in June

He had said the second phase of the search would involve an additional area of 60,000 sq km.

Flight MH370 went missing on March 8, 2014 during a routine flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing, China.

The Boeing 777 aircraft had 298 passengers and crew on board, with most of them being Chinese nationals.

On Jan 29, 2015, the Malaysian government had officially declared MH370 as 'lost' and that all passengers and crew were presumed dead.