LANGKAWI: The prime minister watched a demonstration put on by Malaysian maritime security agencies taking part in the Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace exhibition 2023 and looked suitably impressed.
Unavailable for the gracing ceremony in the morning at the Mahsuri International Exhibition Centre, where the aerospace segment of Lima '23 is taking place, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim made sure he was able to attend the maritime gracing ceremony.
In fact, his officers sent word ahead to the Royal Malaysian Navy days before that he was keen on attending the ceremony and it was pushed back to 4pm to accommodate his wishes.
Various boats like fast attack craft and fast interceptor craft, as well as rigid-hull inflatable boats, or RHIBs, smaller craft like personal watercraft, carrying well-armed commandos showed off their vessels' capabilities.
Helicopters from the navy and Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency were also involved.
The commandos then boarded a boat to despatch terrorists who had taken the vessel over, and a land-based "house" where other terrorists were hiding.
It was an impressive show of force and inter-agency cooperation as it involved the RMN, MMEA, Marine Police and the Customs Department commandos, as well as the Fire and Rescue and the Fisheries departments.
Having taken part in the ceremony, Anwar was then taken aboard the KD Terengganu, the fourth of the RMN's Kedah-class offshore patrol vessels (OPVs).
As the OPV sailed at a steady 12 knots in a review of the 40-odd vessels anchored in waters off Resorts World Langkawi, where the maritime segment of Lima '23 is taking place, the prime minister took the salute of the sailors aboard them.
RMN has 20 vessels in total taking part, while the MMEA has sent three and the Marine Police, two.
University Malaysia Terengganu's research vessel RV Discovery is also part of the fleet at anchor.
There are also 14 vessels from 12 foreign countries.
Of the more interesting vessels is the United States Navy's littoral combat ship USS Mobile, which had at first pulled out but has made it back.
Also of interest are the Italian Navy's latest ship, the ITS Francesco Morosini, which is also an OPV; South Korea's landing ship, tank, the ROKS No Jeok Bong; and, the Indonesian Navy's trimaran fast attack craft KRI Golok, the most interesting of the three ships our neighbours have sent here.
