Mat Sabu: M'sian armed forces presence in Saudi Arabia being re-evaluated

PETALING JAYA: The Government is reassessing the decision of the previous Barisan Nasional administration to place a Malaysian Armed Forces (ATM) team in Saudi Arabia.

In a statement Wednesday, Defence Minister Mohamad Sabu (pic) said the team was on standby to evacuate Malaysians from Yemen.

“Malaysia has never been involved in the attack on Yemen, which is also a Muslim country. Nevertheless, the ATM presence in Saudi Arabia has indirectly mired Malaysia in the Middle East conflict,” he said.

Mohamad, who is popularly known as Mat Sabu, said Malaysia had always practised a neutral policy, and that the country does not side with the political ideology of any of the world’s superpowers.

He added that the Malaysian Government has been actively involved in the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) and even chaired it once.

“The Government will make a decision on the matter in the near future after a re-evaluation has been completed,” he said.