The following is the latest entry in Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamed’s official Facebook page:
MEETING WITH H.E ZUKAN HELEZ, VICE-CHAIRMAN OF THE COUNCIL OF MINISTERS AND MINISTER OF DEFENCE OF BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA
Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad met H.E Zukan Helez, vice-chairman of the council of ministers and minister of defence of Bosnia and Herzegovina, in Sarajevo recently.
In the preamble, when responding to Mr Helez, Dr Mahathir admitted that Malaysia’s current administration is more focused on domestic issues resulting in less participation in international affairs.
With many domestic political issues still unresolved, trade with foreign nations especially in relations to arms procurement and military engagements had been quite limited.
Despite Malaysia’s lack of participation in foreign affairs, global issues like the conflict between Ukraine and Russia have had an impact on the country, causing economic instability and inflation.
Dr Mahathir pointed out that Malaysia had continued with the advocacy for peaceful negotiations as well as arbitration to resolve conflicts and was opposed to the idea of war being a solution.
During the meeting, Dr Mahathir shared with Mr Helez some perspectives and backgrounds on the formation of ASEAN, which has allowed member nations to address conflicts through dialogues and negotiations.
As an example, Dr Mahathir cited how Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore had successfully resolved many disputes through the International Court of Justice without having to go to war to settle the disputes between them.
Both Dr Mahathir and Mr Helez expressed concern over tensions between Russia and China with the Western powers and the United States, emphasising that war between these nations could escalate into World War 3.
Dr Mahathir was of the opinion that while Malaysia’s current focus is on internal matters, he believes that Malaysia recognises the significance of strengthening relations with countries like Bosnia and Herzegovina, particularly in areas such as trade, technology, and tourism.
However, challenges such as limited airline connections and insignificant private sector cooperation and investment between the two nations were part of the reasons for the lacklustre bilateral trade relations.
#PRN #Mahathir
