India and Malaysia on Monday agreed to further boost their Defence and strategic ties during the talks between Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Senior Defence Minister YB Dato ‘Seri HishammuddinTun Hussein
The two Ministers held the meeting through video conference and also discussed a wide range of issues concerning bilateral, regional and Defence industrial cooperation, Defence Ministry officials said here.
Rajnath congratulated Dato ‘Seri HishammuddinTun Hussein for assuming the office of the Senior Defence Minister in August, 2021. Both Ministers expressed the intent to further boost the already strong India-Malaysia Defence cooperation.
The two Ministers discussed the existing Defence cooperation activities and framework, and ways to further enhance them under the existing Malaysia India Defence Cooperation Meeting (MIDCOM) framework.
The next MIDCOM is scheduled to be held in July 2022, and it was decided to use this platform for a deeper engagement in defence.
Rajnath highlighted the areas in which Indian defence industries could assist Malaysia. He suggested a visit of senior officers from Malaysia to India to get first-hand experience of the facilities and products of the Indian defence industry.
The Malaysian Senior Defence Minister expressed the need for inducting women personnel in peacekeeping missions. Both sides agreed to engage each other on this issue. It was also agreed to upgrade capability for Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) operations. Rajnath also invited the Senior Defence Minister of Malaysia to visit India at an early convenient date to discuss closer and strategic defence ties.