Malaysia will consider China’s proposal to set up a regional counter-intelligence centre in Johor equipped with radar surveillance and a missile system.

The Malaysian Insight, a Kuala Lumpur-based news website, had reported that China would offer Malaysia up to 12 units of the AR3 multiple launch rocket system (MLRS) at the ceremony.

The report, citing sources, said the offer reflected the widening defence and trade ties between the two countries.

“MLRS is usually for surface-to-surface attack,” said Dr Wu Shang-Su, a research fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies.

He noted that longer-range units based in Johor could even reach Indonesia, and those with guided missiles were “capable of precise attacks on important targets”.