Japan on Mar. 30 extended aid worth 992 million yen (10.1 million USD) to Malaysia to boost maritime security in the Malacca Strait, local media reported.
Japanese Ambassador to Malaysia Masahiko Horie and Malaysian Foreign Affairs Secretary General Rastam Mohamad Isa signed and exchanged notes on the grant which will be used to provide equipment to boost law enforcement and surveillance in combating smuggling, piracy, trafficking and search and rescue operations.
This is the second aid allocation given by Japan. The country gave 473 million yen to Malaysia last year, the Kyodo news said.
Each year, some 14,000 Japanese vessels ply the Malacca Strait, which has been notorious as a pirate haven. According to Japanese Ambassador Horie, 80 percent of Japan's oil supply from the Middle East passes through the narrow sea lane between Peninsular Malaysia and Indonesia's Sumatra Island./.