The 'Italian challenge' facing Malaysia

New Straits Times

3 days ago

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's official visit to Italy is emblematic of Malaysia's growing ambition on the global stage — not just as a middle power, but as the chair of Asean.
While the RM8.13 billion in potential Italian investments in the petrochemicals, electronics and oil and gas sectors made headlines, the more significant development lies in Italy's evolving role — not merely as a development partner, but as Asean's strategic development partner.
This elevation is not symbolic. It reflects Italy's deeper integration into the region's diplomatic, economic and security architecture.
It also enhances Asean's multilateral toolkit at a time when the Indo-Pacific faces mounting geopolitical, environmental and technological disruptions.
For Malaysia, it signals a deft balancing act between economic diversification and defence readiness — particularly in the maritime domain.
The Royal Malaysian Navy has been undergoing a structural rethink. Force Structure 2040 seeks to modernise the fleet, improve operational readiness and assert maritime sovereignty — especially in contested waters.
In this context, Italy has emerged as a strategic partner, offering advanced naval technology and bilateral defence cooperation.
Its contribution goes beyond defence procurement. It enhances Malaysia's maritime surveillance and disaster response capacity — capabilities that are vital for both national security and Asean's regional humanitarian and emergency response systems.
As Asean chair, Malaysia is responsible for convening key dialogues on regional security — including within the Asean Regional Forum and East Asia Summit.
Italy's inclusion in these conversations, particularly around disaster preparedness, maritime law and freedom of navigation, aligns with Asean's evolving security agenda
Italy brings Nato-standard training, interoperability know-how and a rules-based approach to maritime operations. These are not peripheral contributions — they are foundational to helping Asean respond to emerging maritime risks in crowded and contested waters.
Malaysia's original naval transformation strategy — the 15-to-5 Programme — sought to streamline the navy's assets from fifteen classes of ships to five.
The logic was sound: reduce operational redundancies, improve interoperability and lower long-term maintenance costs. Yet that clarity of vision now faces pressure from a growing pool of capable international suppliers.
Italy, Turkiye, France and South Korea all offer sophisticated maritime platforms — but with differing combat systems, training protocols and communication architectures. The unintended result is strategic fragmentation.
For example, a littoral mission ship requires a core crew size of around 61.
But differences in platform design and system integration mean each vessel demands distinct technical training and support infrastructure. This creates operational silos — a serious liability in times of crisis or joint operations.
This is where Malaysia's defence planners must exercise strategic discipline. Procurement should be guided not by availability alone, but by doctrinal coherence and fleet-wide interoperability.
Malaysia's Asean chairmanship presents an opportunity to link domestic reforms — including naval modernisation — with region-wide initiatives on regional maritime security.
This is the challenge and opportunity before Malaysia: to use Italy's partnership as a test case for how a middle power can diversify defence cooperation without sacrificing the cohesion of command.
Italy's rising role in Asean reflects a broader global shift. Southeast Asia, once seen as a passive recipient of great power overtures, is now shaping its partnerships with clarity and intention.
Malaysia has reinforced this trend — choosing to engage with not just those who offer capital and platforms, but also those who align with Asean's strategic
priorities.
But the true test lies ahead: can Malaysia align Italy's contributions with a cohesive national and regional maritime strategy? Can Asean build a multilateral security system where partners from Europe bring more than symbolism?
Naval strength lies not only in the quality of ships, but also in their coordination — in their ability to sail in formation, united by a shared sense of strategic purpose.