PETALING JAYA: Several United States lawmakers have called on Washington to review its security and economic ties with Malaysia following Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's remark to deport dual citizenship-holding Israeli nationals in the country.
In a joint letter issued on Tuesday (July 21) by Greg Landsman, Josh Gottheimer, Jimmy Panetta, Dan Goldman, Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Jared Moskowitz, Brad Sherman and Jake Auchincloss, those who signed the letter urged US Secretary of State Marco Rubio to clarify the steps to be taken in response to Anwar's remarks.
The US Congressmen said Malaysia receives security assistance, including the International Military Education and Training (Imet) programme, which pays for Malaysian military personnel to receive professional US military training.
"They also benefit significantly from access to our technology and markets.
"Given these points of diplomatic leverage, we believe the US should make clear to Anwar and his government that, with our aid and support, comes an expectation that they will not target the nationals of one of our closest allies," they said.
"Should Malaysia refuse to reverse this discriminatory policy within 15 days, we urge suspension of IMET funding.
"We strongly urge you (Rubio) to use every tool at our disposal to make clear that this conduct carries consequences," they added.
This came after Anwar said last Wednesday (July 15), that Malaysia would deport Israeli nationals found to be holding dual citizenship and residing in the country.
This was in response to calls by the Johor government for authorities to investigate Network School, the technology community at Forest City, following claims that Israeli nationals with dual citizenship were living in the area.
The Congressmen also said that it was unacceptable for a head of state to publicly declare that his country would hunt down and expel citizens of their close ally based solely on their nationality.
"For millennia, Jews around the world have seen this playbook.
"The demonisation and expulsion of Jews eventually leads to the worst case outcomes," they said, adding that the US needed to push back on this anti-semitism.
"This is also a government that maintains open ties with Hamas.
"Hamas fighters have even trained on Malaysian soil," they said.
"We, therefore, urge you (Rubio) to undertake a review of our security and economic relationship with Malaysia to ensure that it is serving the best interests of the US," they added.
