DoJ PROBE NOT TOUCHED DURING NAJIB’S VISIT
Trump looks forward to discussing security issues, says White House spokesman
THE United States Justice Department’s (DoJ) probe into the 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) scandal is independent of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s meeting with US President Donald Trump yesterday.
Trump’s administration refused to comment on the matter during a media briefing by White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders on Monday.
“Look, we are not going to comment on an ongoing investigation being led by the DoJ, and that investigation is apolitical and certainly independent of anything taking place tomorrow (Tuesday),” she said when asked whether Trump would address or avoid the issue.
Earlier, Sanders said Trump was looking forward to discussing wide-ranging security issues with Najib.
She said the US and Malaysia “have had a 60-year relationship and partnership built on common economic and security interests and that continues”.
“The president looks forward to discussing a wide variety and wide range of regional security issues with the prime minister and talking about ways that they can strengthen counter-terrorism cooperation.
“Certainly the halt of the Islamic State, addressing North Korea and their continued actions and making sure that we promote maritime security in the South China Sea, these are certainly some of the priorities of tomorrow’s (Tuesday’s) meeting,” she said on what the meeting was expected to achieve.
The DoJ had, in July last year, led a civil suit seeking the forfeiture and recovery of more than US$1 billion (RM4.2 billion) in assets linked to an “international conspiracy to launder funds misappropriated” from 1MDB.
The department was seeking to recover US$540 million (RM2.2 billion) in assets from 1MDB in the civil action.
Malaysian Attorney-General Tan Sri Mohamed Apandi Ali had concluded that the suit was politically-motivated as the DoJ did not request for any statement or official information from the Malaysian A-G’s office.