MALAYSIA will continue to fight for important issues at international forums, especially concerning the fate of the Palestinian people, the situation in Myanmar, the economies of developing countries and the reform of the United Nations (UN), according to Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob.

He said highlighting these issues at the 77th UN general assembly in New York was a success, said Malaysia had been consistently fighting for the fate of the Palestinian people for a long time.

“Malaysia will continue to support Palestine until the cruelty is stopped and its people establish their own country.

“We are disappointed that the Palestinian issue is still not resolved even though there have been three UN resolutions,” he said during a press conference yesterday at the end of a four-day working visit to New York.

On Friday, the prime minister delivered a national statement to the UN, where he touched on the issue of Palestine, the war in Ukraine, the crisis in Myanmar – which has caused Malaysia to accept approximately 200,000 Rohingya refugees – and the need to reform the UN, now considered incapable of resolving various conflicts around the world.

“Most of the countries acted so quickly in the case of Ukraine. Malaysia wants similar action to be taken to resolve the issue in Palestine. Israel needs to stop being an apartheid entity,” Ismail said.

He also said that the international community should act quickly to resolve the political crisis in Myanmar, adding that the UN seemed to have washed its hands of the issue and left it up entirely to Asean.

Ismail said his call for immediate reforms to the UN at the governing body’s largest annual gathering attended by more than 150 world leaders – especially for the veto power to be removed – had received positive feedback from several other leaders he met, including UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres.

“By right, the principle of one country, one vote should be given priority. Yet in reality, the voices of 193 UN member countries are not important, because the five countries that have veto power can cancel whatever resolution that is brought up,” he added.

On his proposal for the UN to establish a mechanism for international monetary cooperation to deal with various economic issues, including inflation, Ismail said that although the central banks of each country had the right to raise interest rates, the impact on other countries should also be given due attention

“For example, when the United States raises its interest rates, it affects Malaysia and other countries as well. What we want is co-ordination or consideration before measures like this are taken,” he said.

The prime minister said the proposal was aimed at building a more effective, fair system that was able to bring balance to global development in the world. – Bernama, September 26, 2022.