LUMUT: The Royal Malaysian Navy's (RMN) Special Force (Paskal) will be procuring various new assets soon to raise its capability in maintaining security of the country.

Senior Defence Minister, Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein said this procurement effort followed continuous discussions between the Defence Ministry's top officials and RMN, taking into account the wants and needs of the RMN itself.

"PASKAL not only places importance on regular tactical training but also on the need for assets in tackling security threats," he said at a news conference after his official visit to KD Panglima Garang at the RMN base, here.

Hishammuddin said the procurement included for assets such as the closed-circuit breathing apparatus, sub-machine guns, static parachutes, freefall parachutes and thermal binoculars, as well as building of a sniper shooting tower at the Sniper Shooting Range.

Meanwhile, he said, PASKAL also received over 900 assets of various types including the Glock 17 Gen 4, M4 carbines, bullet-proof vests, spotter scopes and Thales hand-held radios from the United States.

Hishammuddin said this contribution was through the close Malaysia-US defence cooperation, especially via the Building Partnership Capacity and the close relations between him and the US Defence Secretary, Lloyd J. Austin III.

He also said that upgrading works on the Lumut naval base's operational jetty were in full swing to raise the security level for the RMN community here and to provide a more conducive workplace at a cost of about RM64 million and expected to be completed in 2023.

-- BERNAMA