Malaysia and Russia are set to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on disaster management cooperation by the end of this year, Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi announced.

The agreement will lay the groundwork for joint training, knowledge sharing, and coordinated emergency response efforts. As Asean Chair, Malaysia aims to lead regional disaster preparedness initiatives.

Zahid, who also heads Malaysia’s disaster management committee, welcomed Russia’s offer to train Malaysian officers, including a course in Vladivostok this September. Talks also include UAV technology transfers for disaster monitoring.

Both countries agreed to hold joint search and rescue training between Malaysia’s SMART team and Russia’s RUS-03, with further capacity-building for fire and rescue officers in St Petersburg.

The collaboration also involves cultural exchange, strengthening people-to-people ties, and cooperation through global and regional platforms like Insarag and ACDM.

Zahid praised the strong ties with Russia’s Emercom and looks forward to deeper cooperation at an upcoming disaster management conference in Azerbaijan. Russian minister Alexander Kurenkov echoed this, highlighting mutual interest in training, early warning systems, and tech-based disaster prevention.