As early as the 1980s, the Royal Malaysian Navy began to adjust and actively improve its coastal defense strategy in order to build a modern navy leading in weapons and equipment in Southeast Asia. The Malaysian Navy acquired two Kasturi-class corvettes in 1983, KD Kasturi and KD Lekir, and Commissioned in 1984. After about 25 years of service, they underwent an extensive modernisation known as Service Life Extension Program starting in 2009, enabling them to be employed for another 10 to 15 years.