India-Malaysia joint focus group to tackle new maritime security threats

India and Malaysia on Wednesday identified ways to deepen existing defence collaborations between the two nations, particularly in the fields of maritime security, multilateral engagements and defence industry, as they agreed to form a "joint focus group" to address non-traditional maritime security threats.

Both sides also identified steps to further enhance cooperation in emerging areas such as cybersecurity and Artificial Intelligence (AI), the Indian defence ministry said.

The 13th Malaysia-India Defence Cooperation Committee (MIDCOM) meeting took place in Kuala Lumpur on Wednesday.

The meeting was co-chaired by Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh and Lokman Hakim Bin Ali, Secretary General, Ministry of Defence, Malaysia,  "Both sides expressed happiness at the growing bilateral defence cooperation with regular engagements between the two armed forces in recent years," the defence ministry said in a statement.

The two sides held wide-ranging discussions on effective and practical initiatives to further expand bilateral defence engagements, and on regional and global issues.

"Both chairs identified steps to further enhance cooperation in emerging areas such as cybersecurity and AI. They identified ways to deepen the existing collaborations, particularly in defence industry, maritime security, and multilateral engagements," the statement said.

They also agreed to form a "joint focus group to address non-traditional maritime security threats", it said.

"Both sides reaffirmed their commitment to fully implement the new initiatives under the defence pillar of the comprehensive strategic partnership, as envisioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Malaysian counterpart Anwar Ibrahim during the latter's visit to India in August 2024," the statement said.

India and Malaysia also exchanged the finalised terms of reference (ToR) on the establishment of a strategic affairs working group, the defence ministry said.

"This forum will act as a consultative mechanism intermediate between the MIDCOM (Malaysia-India Defence Cooperation Committee) and the two sub-committees to progress all aspects of bilateral defence cooperation," the statement said.

The two sides also exchanged the finalised ToR on the establishment of an Su-30 forum as an outcome of the MIDCOM.

The Su-30 forum will "enable closer cooperation between the two air forces in exchanging expertise and best practices in Su-30 maintenance", the statement said.

Rajesh Kumar Singh highlighted the capability of the Indian defence industry, particularly its potential to collaborate with the Malaysian companies and the armed forces in their capability enhancement and modernisation efforts.

He also congratulated Malaysia on assuming the chairmanship of ASEAN and ASEAN Defence Ministers' Meeting-Plus, and wished its defence ministry the best for conducting the ADMM Plus and ASEAN Defence Senior Officials' meetings this year, the statement said.

"India supports ASEAN centrality and unity, which is a crucial element of India's Indo-Pacific vision. The defence secretary reiterated India's support to Malaysia's endeavours as the ASEAN chair in promoting a stronger, unified, and prosperous ASEAN that plays a central role in shaping the evolving dynamics of the Indo-Pacific region," it said.

India considers Malaysia as an "important partner" in the Indo-Pacific as Malaysia lies at the confluence of three key foreign policy visions, i.e., the Act East Policy, SAGAR (Security and Growth for All in the Region), and the Indo-Pacific Oceans Initiative, the statement said.