KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 8 — Malaysia and Cambodia are committed to strengthening bilateral ties in defence and security, with Defence Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin making a courtesy call on Cambodian Prime Minister Samdech Thipadei Hun Manet at the Peace Palace in Phnom Penh yesterday. Discussions focused on finalising the Malaysia-Cambodia Defence Cooperation Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), which is now in its final stage and hoped to be signed during the Asean Defence Ministers’ Meeting (ADMM) in the Philippines soon. Both sides shared views on Asean centrality and regional mechanisms for addressing security challenges, including peace efforts along the Cambodia-Thailand border, and Malaysia expressed continued support for the Asean Observer Team (AOT) mechanism. They also discussed finalising the Code of Conduct (COC) in the South China Sea. The countries committed to strengthening defence cooperation in jungle warfare training, the defence industry, artificial intelligence (AI) and drone technology. Mohamed Khaled also met Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Defence General Tea Seiha, expressing hope that the Cambodia-Thailand ceasefire would be maintained. He noted Malaysia’s unchanged commitment to regional peace despite no longer being the Asean Chair this year. The strengthened cooperation is expected to enhance relations ahead of the 70th anniversary of diplomatic ties in 2027. Prior to Cambodia, Mohamed Khaled led an official working visit to Vietnam on Aug 5