Malaysia and Singapore have agreed to strengthen cooperation in tackling transnational crimes, particularly scams, drug-related offences and border security, as the two neighbouring countries deepen their security collaboration.

The commitment was made at the second Malaysia-Singapore Joint Working Committee (JWC) Meeting on Cooperation in Preventing and Combating Transnational Crimes and the first Joint Committee (JC) on Drugs held here today.

The meeting, hosted by Singapore’s Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), was co-chaired by Wong Kang Jet, Second Permanent Secretary (Home Affairs) at MHA, Second Permanent Secretary (Information) at the Ministry of Digital Development and Information, and Second Permanent Secretary (Cybersecurity) at the Prime Minister’s Office of Singapore, and Malaysia’s Deputy Secretary-General (Security) at the Ministry of Home Affairs (KDN), Dato’ Hj Abdul Halim Hj Abdul Rahman.

Discussions focused on three key areas: combating scam-related crimes and recovering illicit assets, tackling drug offences and rehabilitation of drug addicts, and enhancing border security, including the use of drone systems.

The meetings were held under two bilateral memoranda of understanding — the MoU on Preventing and Combating Transnational Crimes, signed in Singapore on Nov 14, 2024, and the MoU on Cooperation in the Fight Against Illicit Trafficking of Narcotic Drugs, Psychotropic Substances, Their Analogues and Precursor Chemicals, signed on Dec 3, 2025.

Both agreements were signed by Malaysia’s Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail and Singapore’s Minister for Home Affairs K. Shanmugam.

As part of the programme, the Malaysian delegation also visited Singapore’s Anti-Scam Centre (ASC) to observe measures taken to combat scam crimes and exchange information and best practices.

The visit is expected to help Malaysia strengthen the capabilities of its National Scam Response Centre (NSRC), particularly in areas such as scam prevention, information sharing and asset recovery.

The discussions and visit underscored the shared responsibility of Malaysia and Singapore to strengthen cross-border security mechanisms and adopt a more integrated approach to combating transnational crime.

The Malaysian delegation comprised senior officials from KDN and its agencies, including the Public Safety and Security Division, International Division, Prisons, Anti-Drug and Civil Defence Division, Malaysia Public Safety Institute, as well as representatives from the Royal Malaysia Police’s Commercial Crime Investigation Department, Narcotics Criminal Investigation Department and Air Operations Force, and the National Anti-Drugs Agency.