The former United States Coast Guard cutter Steadfast arrived in Malaysia on 4 November, completing a 10,600 nautical mile journey from Baltimore to begin its service with Malaysia’s coast guard, the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency.
The cutter’s arrival at the National Hydrographic Center in Port Klang was marked with a ceremony attended by Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency Director General, Admiral (Maritime) Datuk Haji Mohd Rosli bin Abdullah, MMEA deputy chief of logistics, Rear Admiral Datuk Saiful Lizan bin Ibrahim, National Hydrographic Centre director general Rear Admiral Dr. Najhan bin Md Said, other MMEA senior officials, and representatives from the United States’ embassy in Malaysia.
Admiral Mohd Rosli said during the arrival ceremony that the cutter’s arrival demonstrated the crew’s ability to sail the cutter through international waters, with the successful journey another milestone in improving Malaysian maritime security and the coast guard’s operational abilities.
Commander Mohd Fahimi bin Omar, the commanding officer of the cutter, said the delivery trip was among the longest and “most historic” missions conducted by the coast guard since its founding. In his speech, he spoke of the crew’s experiences sailing through the Atlantic Ocean, Mediterranean Sea, Red Sea, Arabian Sea, Indian Ocean, Andaman Sea and South China Sea on its journey to Malaysia, passing through the Strait of Gibraltar, the Suez Canal and finally the Malacca Strait.
The ex-Steadfast will be named the KM Bendahara once it is officially commissioned, with the cutter already bearing the name on arrival. According to the coast guard, the KM Bendahara will be operationally based in Sabah in East Malaysia, improving the coast guard’s ability to conduct long-distance operations such as patrols in the South China Sea, search and rescue operations, and interdicting transnational criminal activity.
Malaysia’s Home Ministry signed a letter of acceptance for the Steadfast in August 2024, following the cutter’s decommissioning in February that year after 56 years of service with the United States Coast Guard. While the cutter was originally planned to be delivered by the end of 2024, the cutter’s first Malaysian crew only arrived in July 2025 to begin training ahead of sailing it to Malaysia. The United States Coast Guard transferred ownership of the cutter to the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency on September 6, ahead of its departure for Malaysia on September 18.
The United States announced at the end of October that it plans to provide another retired cutter to the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency. In remarks made following the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation on Maritime Issues on the sidelines of the 47th ASEAN Summit and Related Summits, U.S. Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs Allison Hooker said the transfer is awaiting congressional approval.
