Government Malaysia following in the footsteps of Indonesia, refusing to impose sanctions on Russia pending the decision of the United Nations (PBB).
The attitude was taken by Malaysia in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Datuk Seri Saifuddin Abdullah, ensured that Malaysia remained on their stand that was not in favor of anyone.
Saifuddin added that Malaysia does not recognize unilateral sanctions in any form and against any country, unless the resolution of the sanctions is adopted by the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).
“This has always been Malaysia’s principle. If there are sanctions, they must go through the United Nations, and if the resolution is passed by the United Nations, then as a member of the United Nations we must respect and obey them,” said Saifuddin. Malay MailSunday (8/5).
Saifuddin then continued to comment on the Russia-Ukraine conflict. He said that although Malaysia did not take sides with any party, at the same time they had never condoned and condoned aggression by any country that threatened the sovereignty of other countries.
Malaysia’s attitude is similar to that of Indonesia, which so far has not planned to impose sanctions on Russia. The Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed some time ago that Indonesia follows the sanctions imposed by the United Nations, so that unilateral sanctions are not a common choice that the government will take.
“We continue to push both sides to end this conflict. We know that there are people who are working to get both sides to end this conflict. We are not involved that far but we are involving various actors who are actively working on this,” continued Saifuddin.
Saifuddin then commented on the impact of economic sanctions on Malaysians, especially students studying in Russia. He then ensured that, for now, the welfare and safety of Malaysians residing in Russia remains of particular concern.
Saifuddin informed that Malaysians in Russia are currently still able to make financial transactions through the Union Pay service. However, Russian banks performing Union Pay services have so far been limited to just three banks. So far there are 816 Malaysians in Russia. They consist of 779 students and 37 expatriates.
He further added that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is closely monitoring the situation and continues to receive feedback on the latest developments on the impact of the Russia-Ukraine conflict from the Ministry of International Trade and Industry.
A number of countries are known to have imposed sanctions on Russia for their invasion of Ukraine since February 24. The United States is known to have imposed sanctions on Russian oligarchs close to Russian President Vladimir Putin as part of economic sanctions over the invasion of Ukraine.
The Group of Seven industrialized countries (G7) also took part in imposing new sanctions on Russia. Form of sanctions; G7 member countries agreed to ban new investments in key sectors of the Russian economy.
(khr/bac)
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