Malaysia selects Türkiye’s ATMACA missile for navy LCS ships
Malaysia’s Defence Ministry has named Türkiye’s ROKETSAN ATMACA anti-ship missile as its preferred replacement for the Norwegian Naval Strike Missile (NSM) on the Royal Malaysian Navy’s Littoral Combat Ships. Defence Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin said Kuala Lumpur would now negotiate only with Türkiye, and that the choice is not yet a signed LCS missile contract.
Khaled made the announcement on 12 November 2026 in Kuala Lumpur, at a press conference after the ministry’s Innovation Day event. According to the New Straits Times, the ministry had assessed proposals from Türkiye, France and Italy. He said Türkiye offered the best combination of price, delivery timetable and upfront costs, and was now the only counterpart for talks on the replacement missile.
We have reached the stage of determining which country would be the best source of an alternative to replace our missiles. That country is Türkiye. In terms of price, delivery timeline and the initial costs we would have to incur, we have decided that the missile from Türkiye is the best option for us to consider as a replacement for the NSM missiles from Norway.
Bernama’s account, carried by Malay Mail and Free Malaysia Today, also confirms the selection, the start of negotiations and the assurances on compatibility. The minister did not announce a contract value, a missile quantity or a launcher fit for the LCS class.
Assurances on the ships’ combat management system
Khaled said Malaysia had already been given assurances that the missile would work with the ships’ existing combat management system. The New Straits Times quoted him as follows:
We have already been given assurances regarding compatibility, integration and related matters. We will examine these aspects in greater detail and begin negotiations with the Turkish company.
He did not name the combat management system in the remarks reported by the newspapers, and he presented the technical work as something still to be examined in talks rather than as a completed integration.
Deliveries possibly in 2029, because of the existing LMS order
The minister said the replacement missiles could arrive as early as 2029 because Malaysia has already ordered the same missile system for its Littoral Mission Ship Batch 2 (LMS B2) vessels. In the New Straits Times account, a fresh purchase without that LMS order would take about 30 months. With the existing order, he said some rounds could be supplied ahead of schedule:
However, because we have already ordered them for our LMS vessels, we will receive them earlier, as some of the missiles can be supplied ahead of schedule. Perhaps by 2029. So, it will not be 2035.
On cost, Khaled said Malaysia would not have to bear the full price of an entirely new missile system. The New Straits Times reported that the missiles had already been paid for under the LMS contract, and that extra spending would likely cover the launchers and integration with the LCS combat system. He put a completely new procurement in a range of RM700 million to RM900 million, and said Malaysia would not need to spend that amount for the replacement. Those figures describe a full new buy, not a signed LCS contract value.
The NSM dispute and Malaysia’s existing ATMACA line
On the Norwegian NSM contract, Khaled said Malaysia accepted that it would not receive the missiles despite having paid for them, and was following the contractual dispute process. Talks on an amicable settlement had ended without agreement. The ministry would now set up a dispute resolution committee, and could later move to arbitration in Kuala Lumpur if that stage also failed. He cautioned that the process would take time and that compliance with an eventual award was not certain. The government, he added, would not wait for the outcome or for a refund before pursuing an alternative for the ships.
ATMACA is already on Malaysia’s books for another class. Envanter’s Malaysia–Türkiye defence industry file and earlier reporting on the LMS Batch 2 launches in Istanbul record that Kuala Lumpur signed an ATMACA contract with ROKETSAN on 22 April 2026 for the STM-built LMS Batch 2 corvettes. Thursday’s announcement does not replace that contract; it records a preferred supplier decision to arm the delayed LCS class after the NSM export reversal.
Sources
- New Straits Times, 12 November 2026, Fuad Nizam: Malaysia picks Türkiye’s Atmaca missile to replace NSM for Navy LCS
- Bernama, via Malay Mail, 12 November 2026: Malaysia selects Turkiye as preferred alternative missile supplier for Navy’s LCS project
- Free Malaysia Today, 12 November 2026, citing Bernama: Govt to acquire Turkish missiles for LCS
