Kuala Lumpur: Malaysia is poised to dispatch Malaysian Armed Forces (MAF) medical officers to Myanmar on a humanitarian mission, pending approval from the Myanmar government, following the devastating earthquake that struck the nation on March 28. Defence Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin announced that the Malaysian government has committed to covering all expenses necessary to establish a field hospital to support the relief efforts.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, the medical team has already completed thorough preparations and awaits only the Myanmar authorities’ approval regarding the locations for setting up the field hospitals. Mohamed Khaled stated at a press conference that the deployment of the MAF medical officers, comprising 35 personnel, is under consideration, with patient capacity and collaboration with other ASEAN countries also being factored into the planning.

In a related development, on April 5, Mohamad Hasan undertook a one-day visit to Myanmar as part of the ongoing humanitarian mission in the wake of the earthquake. Earlier, on March 30, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim announced that the Malaysian government had already contributed RM10 million in humanitarian aid to Myanmar as an initial step in their support efforts.