Malaysia and Singapore have signed a letter of intent to step up cooperation between their defence establishments in addressing common security concerns, according to Malaysia’s Bernama news agency.

Bernama said the document was signed during a Singapore visit of Malaysian Defence Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein.

The minister and his Singaporean counterpart Ng Eng Hen in a joint statement said both countries concerned had agreed to encourage more military-to-military exchanges, including intelligence exchanges.

Both ministers also affirmed the value of the Malacca Strait Patrols (MSP) in enhancing the security of the Straits of Malacca and Singapore , and discussed ways to take the MSP forward.

Singapore reaffirmed support for Malaysia's new initiative to enhance naval cooperation through coordinated maritime patrols within each country's own territorial waters.

The two Defence Ministers reaffirmed their countries' commitment to the Five Power Defence Arrangements, the ASEAN Defence Ministers' Meeting (ADMM) and the ADMM-Plus.

Apart from that, they also affirmed the close cooperation between both militaries in non-traditional security areas, such as the recent flood relief efforts in Malaysia.-VNA