On January 25th 2008, Mr. Masahiko Horie, Japanese Ambassador to Malaysia and Tan Sri Rastam Mohd Isa, Secretary of Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Malaysia, signed the Exchange of Notes on "the Project for Improvement of equipment for Maritime Security Enhancement".

The project worth 473 million yen aims to enhance the capacity of MMEA for maritime security in the Straits of Malacca and Malaysian territorial waters.

Japan has assisted in the creation of the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) and has also been cooperating on capacity-building on maritime guard and rescue. Since 2004, Japan has been dispatching experts and technical cooperation to support MMEA to further improve the maritime security in Malaysian territorial waters.

Japan as a major user-country of the Straits of Malacca reaffirms its commitment to strengthening safety and security of the Straits and enhanced cooperation between the two countries.