US denies role in Norway’s move to halt missile delivery to Malaysia

US denies role in Norway’s move to halt missile delivery to Malaysia


The US says it supports Malaysia’s acquisition of a naval strike capability to respond to regional threats and protect its sovereignty

David H Gamble Jr, chargé d’affaires of the US embassy in Malaysia, said the US remains committed to its defence and security relationship with Malaysia. (Facebook pic)

PETALING JAYA: The US government has denied involvement in the decision by the Norwegian government and Norwegian defence company Kongsberg Defense & Aerospace to cancel its delivery of a naval strike missile (NSM) system to Malaysia.

The Norwegian government had revoked the export permit for the NSM ordered by Malaysia from Kongsberg under a 2018 contract to equip six littoral combat ships, saying that exports of its defence technology would be limited to its “allies and closest partners”.

News reports have suggested that US-made restricted components embedded in Norwegian NSMs – particularly advanced guidance gyroscopes – may have triggered US export controls, allowing Washington an indirect veto over the deal.


However, David H Gamble Jr, chargé d’affaires of the US embassy in Malaysia, said the US supported Malaysia’s acquisition of a naval strike capability to respond to regional threats and to protect its sovereignty.

In a statement today, Gamble said the US even facilitated the integration of the necessary guidance components for the NSMs to Kongsberg in 2024, to ensure the system’s delivery to Malaysia.


“The US remains committed to our robust defence and security relationship with Malaysia and further advancing it through our memorandum of understanding on defence cooperation, 14 regular bilateral and multilateral exercises, professional development, and maritime security assistance,” said Gamble.

According to the US Naval Institute, the NSMs were scheduled for delivery to Malaysia in early March. It said Malaysian officials were, however, “notified of unspecified delays”.

Defence minister Khaled Nordin said on Tuesday that Malaysia was seeking more than RM1 billion in compensation from Kongsberg in direct and indirect costs. He said the government had already made payments amounting to 95% of the total procurement value of RM634 million.

He said the indirect costs included the removal of missile mounting systems already installed on the navy’s vessels, as well as the integration of replacement systems supplied by other vendors.

Norway’s decision to cancel the export licences was also criticised by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, who said it was unacceptable.

Anwar said Malaysia had faithfully honoured every obligation under the contract since 2018, while Norway “has not felt compelled to extend us the same courtesy and demonstration of good faith”.