The Malaysian government will not remain silent and plans to seek immediate clarification from Norway regarding the issue of missile supply for the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) project.
This step was taken after Norway reportedly changed its defense export policy, which resulted in the supply of Naval Strike Missile (NSM) missiles for use by our combat ships being affected. This is another major challenge for the existing LCS project that has already experienced delays before.
Using Diplomatic Channels
Defense Minister, Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin, confirmed that Malaysia has a missile supply agreement with the Norwegian company, Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace AS, specifically to equip the LCS ship assets.
According to him, Malaysia will use good government-to-government relations to resolve this impasse.
“The Malaysian government will use diplomatic channels with the Norwegian government to seek further clarification, in addition to discussing reasonable next steps in the national interest,” Khaled said in a statement on Wednesday.
LCS Project: From 6 to 5 Ships
For your information, although the original agreement was signed since 2011, the first LCS ship is only expected to be delivered to the Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN) by the end of this year.
Some important facts about this project that you need to know:
Cost Increase: The total cost has now jumped to RM11.2 billion compared to the original budget of RM9 billion.
Number of Ships Decreased: Despite the increase in costs, the number of ships ordered has been reduced from six to only five.
This missile supply issue is not a small matter. A warship without missiles is like a "car without an engine"; it cannot function fully as a national defense asset.
The people are now certainly hoping that these negotiations with Norway will yield positive results. We do not want costs to continue to increase or national defense assets to be left idle without proper equipment, especially when involving billions of ringgit of public money.
The Ministry of Defense is currently working hard behind the scenes to ensure that the sovereignty of our waters is not disturbed due to changes in foreign policy. We will wait and see what the outcome of this "diplomatic chat" will be.
