PUBLISHED ONAugust 24, 2026 11:53 AMUPDATEDAugust 24, 2026 1:09 PMBYSean LerMalaysia's army chief General Azhan Md Othman is on a three-day introductory visit to Singapore till Tuesday (Aug 25).
The 56-year-old was appointed as Malaysia's 31st army chief on Jan 1 this year.
In a statement on Monday, the Ministry of Defence (MINDEF) said Gen Azhan's visit underscores the close and enduring defence relationship between Singapore and Malaysia.
"The Singapore army and the Malaysian army cooperate and interact regularly across a broad range of bilateral activities, including exercises, high-level visits, professional exchanges, and cross-attendance of professional courses," the ministry added.
It noted that these regular interactions have deepened the mutual understanding and people-to-people ties between the two armies.
As part of his visit, Gen Azhan called on Singapore's Minister for Defence Chan Chun Sing on Monday morning.
During their meeting, they reaffirmed the warm and longstanding defence ties between the two countries.
Chan and the Malaysian army chief also highlighted that both armies will be commemorating the 30th anniversary of the annual bilateral exercise, codenamed Semangat Bersatu (Unity in Spirit) this year.
They also discussed efforts to enhance cooperation and build people-to-people ties between both defence establishments particularly amongst the younger generation, MINDEF said.
General Azhan also called of Chief of Defence Force Vice-Admiral Aaron Beng and Chief of Army Major-General Cai Dexian.
He then visited the 3rd Singapore Division at Jurong Camp, where he received a brief and viewed static displays of the Singapore army’s range of warfighting platforms and capabilities.
In April, Malaysia's Armed Forces chief General Malek Razak Sulaiman also made an introductory visit to Singapore.
General Malek became Malaysia's 24th Chief of the Armed Forces on Feb 1.
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