FEATURED ARTICLES
LCS fiasco at critical crossroads
Malaysia’s Littoral Combat Ship programme was slated to see its first delivery in April 2019, with the remaining ships being delivered every six months after that. As at December 2020, it was confirmed that while RM6 billion had been paid out, the first ship of the class was only 59.79% complete. It is now March 2021, nearly two years since the original due date, and it would appear no end is in sight for the troubled procurement project.
Making Sense of Malaysia’s Maritime Security
Both the bureaucratic dissonance and the political dismissiveness towards maritime security could perhaps be addressed by a national security strategy wargaming exercise. Such an exercise would take cues from President Eisenhower’s Project Solarium which produced NSC 162/2, a national security document outlining America’s national strategy to counter the Soviet Union.
Defence Reform in Malaysia – Quo Vadis?
On the 2nd December last year, the Pakatan Harapan government presented the Defense White Paper (DWP) in Parliament. The first of its kind, it is a publicly available policy document that provides guidance to policy makers on conducting national defense affairs, while also giving the members of the public an opportunity to engage in this previously opaque area of public policy. The current DWP is to last over a period of the next 10 years, starting from 2021.
Re-Examining the National Security Architecture of Malaysia
The announcement by the Defence Minister cum Senior Minister in charge of security affairs Dato’ Sri Ismail Sabri Yaakob to deploy the Malaysian Armed Forces (MAF) in support of the police has generated considerable consternation among the public. There is a lot of misunderstanding about what MAF is supposed to do, and how they fit in the bigger context of our national security.
Managing Military Misconducts – Of Ragging, Bullying and Corrective Measures
If these problems are not addressed properly over the long term, the reputation of the Armed Forces as a professional organization will suffer. It may come to a point where future youths and families may altogether advocate against any form of service in the military, which in turn might deprive the Armed Forces a pool of dynamic recruits and cadets.
Only in growth, reform, and change, paradoxically enough, is true security to be found.
Anne Morrow Lindbergh
