KUALA LUMPUR: The government has beefed up its radar capabilities this year, mainly to monitor Sabah's waters and the South China Sea, the Dewan Rakyat was told today.

Deputy Defence Minister Adly Zahari said the enhancements were part of the ministry's force modernisation plans, which also include acquiring Littoral Mission Ships (LMS) from Turkiye.

"All these assets are integrated to ensure our sovereign territory is continuously safeguarded.

"We maintain constant operational readiness, with ongoing operations such as those conducted by the Royal Malaysian Air Force, including Ops Daulat Benua," he said in response to a supplementary question from Datuk Awang Solahuddin Hashim (PN-Pendang).

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Earlier, Awang had asked about the ministry's plans to mobilise strategic assets to protect Malaysia's territory from frequent encroachment by foreign vessels, noting that current S-band radar systems could be disrupted or jammed as they operate in the 2 to 4 GHz range – a frequency widely used by civilian applications, including Bluetooth and WiFi.

Adly said that while the issues raised were technical in nature, all other areas remained under control.

"We receive constant reports, and when there are foreign assets or vessels, we coordinate with the relevant ministries.

"Defence diplomacy is part of our strategy to protect our sovereignty and territorial waters," he said.

He added that the ministry has plans to further enhance its capabilities under the 13th Malaysia Plan, which is still being debated.

"This includes strengthening our cyber domain. Previously, we had electromagnetic and cyber divisions; now, we have upgraded to a full cyber command.

"We are working on all these aspects to ensure that our nation's sovereignty and security are always protected," he said.