‘Israeli ship ban won’t affect ties with other nations’

PUTRAJAYA: The government’s decision to not allow ships flying the Israeli flag to enter the country will not affect Malaysia’s relations with other countries, says Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan.

The decision, he said, clearly reflected the country’s firm stance on the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

“We are not saying that we do not value our relations with other countries but (the ban is) due to the determination of Malaysia’s position regarding the situation in Gaza and in the Middle East at this point,” he was quoted as saying by Bernama.

Mohamad was speaking to the press after clocking in at the lobby of Wisma Putra here yesterday as a symbol of him officially starting his duties at the ministry.

On Wednesday, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim announced that the government would no longer accept ships flying the Israeli flag into the country with immediate effect, on top of prohibiting any ship en route to Israel from loading cargo at Malaysian ports.

Anwar, who is also the Finance Minister, said the government had decided to block and disallow vessels from Israel-based shipping company Zim Integrated Shipping Services Ltd from docking at any Malaysian port immediately.

Mohamad said as the Foreign Minister, he would ensure Malaysia continues to play its role in fighting for the Palestinian issue at the international level.

“Malaysia’s position has already been stated very firmly. That is the permanent position that will continue to be adopted by Malaysia.

“So, there is no question that my coming to Wisma Putra will change the country’s position,” he said.

Mohamad said he would also play a role in bringing Malaysia’s messages abroad to continue promoting the nation to the international community, especially with the new policies introduced by the unity government.

He said a difficult task also awaited all Wisma Putra staff to maintain the equilibrium that had already been built between Malaysia and the international community.

“We are trying to find the best way to maintain the principle of Malaysia in continuing to be a neutral country, a friendly country, a country that wants peace, a country that wants to see relations between countries become closer and improved,” he said.

The minister arrived at Wisma Putra at 10am accompanied by Deputy Foreign Minister Datuk Mohamad Alamin and ministry secretary-general Datuk Amran Mohamed Zin.

Mohamad, who was previously Defence Minister, replaced Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abdul Kadir as Foreign Minister following a Cabinet reshuffle on Dec 12.