Malaysian authorities announced today that they are working to save a military ship that sank after hitting an unknown underwater object.
The Navy said in a statement that a leak was first detected in the ship's engine compartment on Sunday, which quickly flooded the vessel.
The crew was unable to repair it and the ship sank a few hours later, according to the statement.
All 39 crew members were safely evacuated and there were no injuries.
Defense Minister Mohamed Kaled Nordin on Monday ordered an inspection of ships over 40 years old, which make up at least a third of the country's fleet.
The sunken ship "Pendekar", which was built by the Karlskrona Varvet shipyard in Sweden, was launched in 1979.
"We do not deny that some of our ships are old, but that is probably not one of the causes. It is important that, fortunately, no lives were lost," Kaled told local media.
Kaled said the modernization of the fleet is underway, which includes the construction of littoral combat ships, the first of which should be completed in 2026. The ministry is also negotiating the purchase of military ships from Turkey.
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