SHAH ALAM: So far so good. It appears even after the official visit of PM9 to Turkiye, there is no official deal for anything Turkish apart from some MOUs (which need official contracts to become valid). PM Ismail Sabri in his official statement stated when he met Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, they exchanged views on how to boost ties between both countries.
Dalam pertemuan empat mata dengan Presiden Erdogan, kami bertukar-tukar pandangan bagi mengukuhkan hubungan Malaysia-Turkiye, di samping berbincang mengenai kerjasama ekonomi dan isu-isu serantau dan antarabangsa.
Perbincangan juga tertumpu kepada mengukuhkan kerjasama dalam bidang pertahanan terutamanya bidang persenjataan supaya syarikat Turkiye melabur di Malaysia dan menjadikan Malaysia sebagai ‘regional hub’ bagi pasaran ASEAN.Semoga hubungan Malaysia dan Turkiye akan terus berkembang meliputi pelbagai bidang yang dapat memberi manfaat kepada kedua-dua negara.
It is interesting to note that during Ismail’s three day official visit to Turkiye, the PM and his delegation met various Turkish defence company delegations, none of which had any contracts with Malaysia. These companies include Turkish Aerospace, Istanbul Shipyard and MKE, all of which are trying to get contracts.
Left out are companies like FNSS which supplied the Adnan and Gempita and Nurol Makina which is building the Ejder Yalcin for the UNIFIL mission. That said, perhaps the officials from the companies met with Ismail and his delegations but were not publicised. (Update: FNSS officials did meet with Ismail)
Also missing is Roketsan, the company that is likely to supply the Army with the Omtas ATGM. I was told that Army officials had seen live firings of the Otmas ATGM in Turkey as it is seen as the best replacement for the Metis-M and Bakhtar Shikan ATGM currently in service in selected units.
— Malaysian Defence
Ideally we’ll only have two infantry operated AGTWs in service; MBT LAW and something else with longer legs [with a tandem warhead]; both with a top and direct attack mode; both non SACLOS wired guided.