DEMANDS for Malaysia to start a peacekeeping mission to Palestine will be brought up at the coming Asean defence ministers meeting, says Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan.
“I will bring the matter up as a side topic during the Asean Defence Ministers Meeting (ADMM) next week. We need to get the collective voice of Asean based on the concept of Asean centrality as we cannot do it on our own.
“We will look into whether Asean agrees to a peacekeeping mission under the banner of the United Nations (UN),” he said during his ministry’s replies on Budget 2024 in the Dewan Rakyat yesterday.
The ADMM is scheduled for next month in Indonesia.
Mohamad was responding to a suggestion by Datuk Seri Shahidan Kassim (PN-Arau) that a peacekeeping mission be sent there under the auspices of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) rather than the UN.
Mohamad stressed that Malaysia’s involvement in peacekeeping missions comes under the purview of the Foreign Ministry.
“It is a foreign affairs matter that should be handled Wisma Putra.
“We at the ministry and armed forces will only act based on what is decided.
“Just decide and we will be there if there is a mandate that allows us to do so,” he said.
Mohamad acknowledged that there had been recent calls from several lawmakers and groups for Malaysia to send a peacekeeping mission to Palestine.
He added that a non-governmental organisation had even held a rally in front of the Defence Ministry complex last Friday calling for one.
“The decision to send troops unilaterally to a conflict zone is not easy.
“It requires careful consideration from various parties including the Foreign Ministry and the views of surrounding nations affected by the crisis.
“More importantly, there needs to be a clear mandate from the UN,” he said.
Earlier, Mohamad informed the House that Malaysia had been involved in 37 UN missions since the 1960, either as observers or peacekeepers.
He said the armed forces is currently involved with a UN peacekeeping mission in Lebanon and four missions as observers in the Congo, Sudan, Western Sahara and Yemen.
