Korean warships visit Sabah
KOTA KINABALU: Malaysia continues to expand its bilateral defence with foreign countries by welcoming two naval warships from the Republic of Korea Navy (ROK Navy) to the Sepanggar Naval Base.
The two warships from the ROK Navy, Kang Gam Chan DDH979 and Hwa Cheaon AOE59, arrived at the Royal Malaysia Navy (RMN) naval base in Sepanggar around 9.30am yesterday.
With 600 crew members on board, both warships paid a four-day visit to Kota Kinabalu as part of their tour visit after stopping at Vietnam, India, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Kuwait, Sri Lanka, Indonesia and Thailand.
Both warships had left their hometown of Jinhae Korea on September 11.
Royal Malaysian Navy Eastern Fleet commander Datuk Syed Zahiruddin Putra Syed Osman said the visit was an opportunity for both countries to exchange and share their skills and knowledge in maritime warfare.
“We are expecting to conduct a training together but have not determined what type of exercise.
“As our visitor have just arrived, we want them to settle down first after being at sea for several weeks,” he said yesterday.
According to Syed Zahiruddin, since the Eastern Fleet was established on April 27, they have received many warships from other countries, which showed the importance of the Eastern Fleet establishment in maintaining security in East Sabah.
“This directly shows that the level of security along the waters of East Sabah is always preserved, thus giving confidence to foreign investors,” he said.
Meanwhile, ROK Navy Commander Cruise Training Task Group (CTTG) Admiral Yang Yong-Mo said this was their 23rd visit to Malaysia since 1964, including to Kuala Lumpur and Port Klang, and his first to Kota Kinabalu.
He said the visit was aimed at enhancing bilateral relationship with the RMN and to reinforce military ties between Malaysia and the Republic of Korea.
The ROK Navy is expected to continue their tour in the United States and Japan before arriving home in Korea on December 18.