Murray Hunter
Two US warships visited Penang
Mar 18, 2026
Photos Sherwynd Kessler
It was confirmed that two US warships from the US Navy’s 5th Fleet made a brief logistical visit to Penang’s northern container terminal. The visit from March 14 to 16 reflected the close and enduring military cooperation Malaysia has with the United States.
On March 15 the Penang-based military aviation tracker Sherwynd Kessler posted photographs of two littoral combat ships (LCS) the USS Tulsa and USS Santa Barbara that had docked at North Butterworth Container Terminal, some 5,600 km from the Persian Gulf. Both these ships were assigned to minesweeping duties in the Persian Gulf before the war.
The timing of this visit came when many nations have forbidden any US military planes, ships and other equipment from transiting their nation’s territories. This includes several European countries including Switzerland, and Spain.
On February 28 the United States together with Israel launched an unprovoked attack on Iran. One of the first air raids killed the Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khameni, while another raid murdered 170 school girls aged 6 to 12 at the Shajareh Tayyebeh Girl’s elementary school. These are all very serious war crimes.
Last October, Putrajaya signed a memorandum of understanding with the Pentagon on defence cooperation. The US is now carrying out saturation bombing of civilians in Iranian cities including hospitals and schools.
The two naval ships are most likely heading back to the gulf to participate in this war that more and more people are becoming critical of. The US appears to have returned to its decapitation strategy with the seeking out and killing of Iranian leader. A tope security chief Ali Larijani was killed just a couple of days ago.
While NATO member countries are refusing to join the war against Iran, the US National Counterterrorism chief Joe Kent has handed in an immediate resignation from his position to US President Trump in protest. Joe Kent said that Washington had been dragged into the war at the behest of Israel, which is shaping up to become another ‘never ending; conflict like Vietnam.
At face value it appears Malaysia is directly supporting the United States and Israel. More realistically, it looks like Malaysia is positioning itself more behind Saudi Arabia that has strongly condemned Iran’s attack on the gulf states. Malaysia deeply values its diplomatic relationship with Saudi Arabia.
Through diplomatic channels (e.g., Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan’s talks with his Iranian counterpart), Saudi Arabia has explicitly warned Tehran to stop attacks on the kingdom, or Riyadh may be forced to allow US forces to use its bases for operations and/or retaliate directly. This is framed as defensive necessity rather than enthusiasm for joining the war.
The opposition coalition Perikatan Nasional (PN) explicitly called on the federal government to provide a detailed explanation regarding the presence of these US naval assets in Malaysian waters. PN secretary-general Takiyuddin Hassan highlighted concerns that this could contradict Malaysia’s neutral stance (particularly in relation to the Middle East conflict), potentially undermining public confidence and the country’s international image. He urged clarification on the purpose, status, route of the ships (e.g., whether in transit to areas like the Strait of Hormuz), and alignment with Malaysia’s non-alignment policy.
Defence Minister Khaled Nordin responded by stating that the port call followed established Malaysian procedures for foreign naval visits, which are routine. Khalid said “These stops allow for logistical arrangements such as replenishments. Any foreign naval vessel must submit a request through its country to the Royal Malaysian Navy, which forwards it to the Foreign Ministry for approval.”
There are some concerns that Malaysia’s role in facilitating or being indirectly involved in military operations linked to the conflict could be detrimental to the nation’s interest. Assisting the United States which is aligned with Israel could add to further division within the Islamic community of nations. Indirectly, Malaysia is supporting an adversary which is killing innocent Muslims on a continuous basis in Iran. As such this could be counterproductive to Malaysia’s aims at progressing within the BRICS procedures to become a full member.
On the other side, Malaysia has done what some other countries are refusing to do. That is host armored ships and give access to military aircraft flying over sovereign territory.
Time will tell whether there will be any diplomatic repercussions to the Malaysian approach.
Like it or not Malaysia has vital National Interest in preserving friendly ties with USA. It is non-negotiable , and Anwar Ibrahim knows it. Those loudmouths demanding break off relations with USA don't have to worry about the consequences.
ReplyDeleteAnyone who works in the hitech industries in Penang or Kulim know well what is at stake.
Such naval visits are part of normal relations, and would have been requested months ago.
Malaysia has hosted China warships before, just recently late 2025. It would go down like a ton of bricks if Malaysia hosts China warships visits but at the same time refuses friendly visits by US Navy ships.