PETALING JAYA: The 12 surveillance drones worth nearly RM80mil to be used by the country’s navy and army were funded by the United States under the Maritime Security Initiative (MSI) programme. The Defence Ministry said the government paid nothing to acquire these drones. It also said that apart from the Malaysian Armed Forces, other enforcement agencies would also benefit from enhanced maritime surveillance and sharing of information. “The ScanEagle UAV will help Malaysia in maritime patrolling,” it said. Reuters reported that it is part of a US$47mil (RM195.5mil) deal to sell 34 ScanEagle drones to the governments of Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam.

Source: The Star June 07, 2019 23:15 UTC