Hishammuddin meets Najib over defence ministry budget needs

KUALA LUMPUR: Defence Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein said today he had met Prime Minister and Finance Minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak to provide inputs on national defence requirements ahead of the 2018 budget presentation on Oct 27.
He said that at the meeting, which was also attended by Chief of Defence Forces Tan Sri Mohamed Affendi Raja Mohamed Noor, he explained the requirements of the ministry to ensure national security and defence.
The proposed total allocation for defence needs next year was presented to Najib, he said to reporters after the launch of the ministry's Syariah Index here.
Hishammuddin also said that the Malaysian Armed Forces would continue to work closely with the security forces of Indonesia and the Philippines to patrol their common land and maritime borders to deny any encroachment by members of militant groups such as Daesh.
"It is a challenge for the MAF to patrol the boundaries in a borderless world. It is not an easy task," he said. — Bernama