Malaysian politicians are showing restraint over spending
It's refreshing to find politicians capable of making rational, considered decisions rather than jumping in without much thought. In Australia, even though we are constantly reminded that this country has a "debt and deficit disaster" money is always readily available for our politicians to spend on military escapades overseas and on new hardware to meet some vague 'threat'.
In Malaysia, politicians seem to be more careful in the way they handle things. The Royal Malaysian Air Force has a fleet of outdated MIG29 fighter jets but rather than rush in to buy replacement such as the US F18 Super Hornet. They are waiting until they are able to properly find the budget for an acquisdition. The current political climate and government austerity measures in Malaysia mean that a number of programs for the Malaysian armed forces look likely to be postponed until the 11th Malaysia Plan, which covers government spending for 2016-2020. A combination of public dissatisfaction over the cutting of government subsidies and the government’s need to balance an increasing deficit has made spending on military procurement politically unviable at present.
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