Caution urged on PM's potential Russia visit, says Foreign Minister

  • 4 months ago
Malaysia has to take a cautious approach regarding Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's potential visit to Russia.

Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan said that despite multiple invitations for Anwar's visit, Malaysia has yet to commit to any, reflecting its careful stance on international engagements.

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Transcript
00:00I and the members of the Parliament of the United Nations appreciate the government's efforts to strengthen the relationship between the two countries.
00:09I would like to add a little, Honourable Prime Minister.
00:11Just like in Africa, we have Franz Zafri, a former French colonial country.
00:18These countries are also part of what Russia calls Near Abroad.
00:23Although they have left the Soviet Union, the influence of Russia, the Kremlin and Moscow is still there.
00:29I have just returned from St. Petersburg, Honourable Prime Minister.
00:33I met with the Minister in charge of Eurasian Economic Integration.
00:37The countries mentioned earlier are also part of the Eurasian Economic Union.
00:43They told me that the relationship between Central Asia, the Eurasian Union and ASEAN needs to be strengthened.
00:55So I would like to ask the Honourable Prime Minister,
00:57the best way for us to strengthen the relationship is by having an official visit of the Prime Minister to Moscow
01:06to meet with the President of Russia, Vladimir Putin.
01:09When will you go? That is my first question.
01:11The invitation has been sent many times, but there is no response from the Prime Minister.
01:18Honourable President, we need to be careful about the relationship between the two countries.
01:25Although we have a good relationship, the geopolitical situation is very fluid right now.
01:38The visit of the Prime Minister needs to be well-planned.
01:45We cannot accept the visit of the Prime Minister.
01:49We have received many visits from the Prime Minister.
01:56But we need to be careful in positioning our country.
02:01Because the visit of the Prime Minister or my visit as a foreign minister
02:06is considered as a recognition of our foreign relations.
02:14We have received many invitations and suggestions.
02:19But the advice from the Foreign Minister to the Prime Minister
02:23is that we need to investigate each and every invitation carefully.
02:28Because we do not want to be involved in a more complex world politics
02:34that will give problems to our relationship with other countries.
02:41As of today, our relationship with Russia is good.
02:44Our relationship with China is good.
02:46Our relationship with other countries is good.
02:48As a foreign minister, through discussions,
02:52we want to position Malaysia as the middle state.
02:57With the permission of the Prime Minister,
02:59we do not want to be seen as leaning towards anybody.
03:04We are a trading country.
03:06Our economy is a trading economy.
03:09We do not want to be seen as leaning towards the right or the left.
03:16We want to be friends with everyone.
03:19This is the basis of our foreign relations.
03:23The basis of our foreign relations is not only diplomatic,
03:29but also trade diplomacy.
03:31Trade diplomacy is our priority.
03:36Me and my colleagues from MITI
03:39always look at the potential areas
03:44where we have the potential to expand or increase trade.
03:52There, we can bring a lot of benefits to our country.
03:56Thank you.
03:57A little explanation, Minister.
03:59I understand that you speak in a diplomatic language.
04:04It is not too direct to the point.
04:05However, for me,
04:06because Yamak-Bombak-Tambun wants to join BRICS,
04:10the main door is to be knocked on in Moscow,
04:12not in Brazil.
04:14So, there must be a meeting.
04:16Next year, ASEAN, we are the chairman.
04:19Invite Russia to come.
04:20Invite the European Economic Union to come.
04:22We will discuss together.
04:23Thank you.
04:24Mr. President, we have met, but it is not official.
04:28We met in a side-line meeting or a full-side meeting.
04:32It is not official yet.
04:35It is true that we want to join BRICS
04:38because BRICS is a long-term bloc.
04:41The bloc is not based on defense or security,
04:45but it is a long-term bloc
04:47to ensure that this country does not become a unipolar world.
04:53There is no great power that dominates the world.
04:57We do not want that to happen.
04:59We want to see this world as it was before.
05:02Now, we are slowly, but surely,
05:06entering the Cold War era.
05:09Either you are with us or you are not with us.
05:12We cannot do that.
05:16That is why Malaysia wants to see this world as a multipolar world.
05:21BRICS is a foundation
05:24to ensure that this world is not dominated by one party.
05:31BRICS is a large country,
05:35with a large GDP,
05:37with more than 3 billion people.
05:40We want to join BRICS not because of anything,
05:42but because we want to join a long-term bloc,
05:48a bloc that can make our voice heard,
05:51a bloc that can make the world heard.
05:53This is what we want to do
05:55so that Malaysia can make its voice heard in many continents.
05:59BRICS is a large continent,
06:02and this is a good thing.
06:04Yes, now Russia has its own presidency,
06:08but next year with Brazil.
06:10We want to enter when we become ASEAN,
06:12so we will negotiate with Brazil first.
06:14Thank you.
06:23www.brics.org

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