SENCE OF SUBMARINE SAFEGUARDS MALAYSIA'S SOVEREIGNTY - MALAYSIAN KING

PRE PORT KLANG (Malaysia), Sept 3 (Bernama) -- The acquisition of submarines for the Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN) is the Malaysian government's biggest commitment to enhancing the capability of its armed forces in safeguarding the sovereignty of Malaysian waters from any threat, said Malaysian King Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin.

"The acquisition enables the RMN, in particular, and the Malaysian Armed
Forces in general, to develop a more credible and capable military force in the
region," Tuanku Mizan said at a ceremony to welcome the arrival of Malaysia's
first submarine, KD Tunku Abdul Rahman (KD TAR), at the KD Sultan Abdul Aziz
jetty, here, Thursday.

Tuanku Mizan also expressed his pride with the spirit and determination
shown by the KD TAR crew in completing their one-year training.

He said this would enable the RMN crew to compete with and be on par with
the capable naval forces of other nations.

"I am aware that a submarine requires a crew with aptitude and that is
highly skilled to operate and manage it," Tuanku Mizan said.

"I believe that you (crew) are the specially chosen and lucky ones to be the
crew members of Malaysia's first submarine, which is the pride of the nation and
which will spur Malaysians to strive for excellence to bring glory to the
nation."

Tuanku Mizan hoped that the high-technoloy asset would be well maintained
and fully utilised to ensure RMN's standing as a credible force in safeguarding
the country's waters.

The KD TAR is one two Scorpene submarines acquired by the Malaysian
government to beef up the RMN.
-- BERNAMA