Tension will not lead to war — Hisham

Defence Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein has reiterated that the current tense situation between Malaysia and North Korea would not escalate to war between the two countries.

On the contrary, negotiations at the highest level between the two countries were underway to resolve the crisis, he said.

“No, although the atmosphere of our current relationship appears tense, it will not reach a point where we would go to war, don’t worry.

“Negotiations are underway with the parties concerned, (namely) the foreign and home ministries, we leave it to them (to negotiate),” he told reporters at the Parliament lobby yesterday.

Hishammuddin, who is also Sembrong MP, was asked on the latest development on the strained diplomatic relations between North Korea and Malaysia, following the death of Kim Jong-nam, the estranged half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport 2 (klia2) on Feb 13.

Last Tuesday, North Korea banned Malaysians from leaving that country, prompting Malaysia to reciprocate in kind, by not allowing North Koreans in Malaysia from leaving.

As of now, nine Malaysians are still stuck in that country, and talks are underway to bring them home safely.

Hishammuddin said the government was confident that other countries which had bilateral relations with Malaysia would help to resolve the conflict with North Korea if the need arose.

“Do not think we rely only on our own assets, as we also have close ties and bilateral relations with many countries.

“For example, during the (disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Flight) MH370 (on March 8, 2014), we did not have any assets to locate the missing aircraft.

“Yet, 26 countries came forward to assist us with the most advanced equipment. This is our advantage,” he added.

In another development, Hishammuddin said several top leaders at the international level had also expressed willingness to attend the Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace 2017 (LIMA’17) exhibition to boost cooperation not only among the ministries, but also at militarylevel. - Bernama