KUALA LUMPUR – Two Malaysians have been selected to continue their studies at prestigious United States service academies, with the stint to prepare them to become military officers.
The US embassy here hosted a virtual send-off today to mark Nicholas Ong Yong Xen and Mohamed Khairel Adha Mohd Khairee’s appointments.
In attendance were Ambassador Brian D. McFeeters and the armed forces’ Lt-Gen Datuk Hashim Aman Shah, who is assistant chief of staff (defence operation and training).
The two students were chosen after a rigorous selection process that evaluated their leadership potential, physical fitness and academic achievements.
Ong will be enrolled in the US Naval Academy (Usna) in Annapolis, Maryland. He attended SMK Puchong Utama (1) before joining the Royal Military College (RMC) in 2019.
Ong, who will study cyber operations, said he is committed to becoming a Royal Malaysian Navy officer.
Khairel Adha, meanwhile, will attend the US Air Force Academy (Usafa) in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The Taiping native attended SMK King Edward VII prior to joining the National Defence University (UPNM) for his foundation studies.
He will take up aeronautical engineering, and hopes to become a Royal Malaysian Air Force fighter pilot upon completion of his studies.
McFeeters congratulated the cadets and expressed his appreciation to the armed forces, RMC and UPNM for their unwavering support in ensuring continued academic collaboration between the US and Malaysia, strengthening people-to-people ties, and forging close partnerships between the countries.
“The Malaysians who study at US service academies serve as ambassadors of the country to the US, and make lifelong connections with US service members and citizens.
“These bonds continue to strengthen our relationships. Cadets Nicholas and Khairel are joining the ranks of these impressive Malaysians today.”
Lt-Col Lemar Farhad, chief of the Defence Cooperation Office at the US embassy, said: “The US service academy programme with Malaysia serves as one of the most significant initiatives in our military engagement with the Malaysian Armed Forces (MAF).
“Graduates of the programme consistently move on to hold prominent positions within MAF. We look forward to further deepening our ties in human capital development through increased training and education programmes in the years to come.”
Hashim said: “MAF views the US as a credible partner in defence cooperation, particularly in enhancing human capital development through professional military education and the US service academy programme.
“The comprehensive US-Malaysia partnership will continue to be a mutually beneficial collaboration to further enhance the bilateral defence relationship between the two countries.”
The embassy said to date, a total of 34 Malaysians have graduated from four US service academies, with the first cadet having attended the Usna class of 1971.
Thirteen completed their programmes at Usna, four at Usafa, 12 at the US Military Academy, better known as West Point, and five at the US Coast Guard Academy.
Earlier this week, several Malaysians made the country proud by graduating from US military academies.
They are Muhammad Salihin Mohd Sabri (Usafa), Ahmad Yusuf Ahmad Azani (Usna), and Sayniish Pillay Muniandy and Wan Kamal Fitri Wan Kamal Baharein (both West Point). – The Vibes, June 9, 2021
