PM hopes Japan will support Malaysia’s bid for Security Council seat

 

Malaysia hopes for a seat on the Security Council in 2036, while Japan is a candidate to be a permanent member. (AP pic)

PETALING JAYA: Malaysia and Japan have called for urgent reforms of the United Nations, including expansion of the Security Council to better meet the needs of the 21st century.

Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and his Japanese counterpart Fumio Kishida, in a joint statement in Tokyo, emphasised the importance for the UN Security Council to expand the number of permanent and non-permanent members.

Anwar said Malaysia hoped Japan would support the country’s bid to be a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council for 2036-2037, while Japan expressed gratitude for Malaysia’s continued support for Japan to be a permanent member of the Security Council.

Their joint statement came following bilateral talks in Tokyo, where an Asean-Japan summit is being held.

Anwar and Kishida also confirmed that they would continue to cooperate on issues such as the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the situation in Ukraine, North Korea’s abductions issue and nuclear and ballistic missile programmes, the situation in Myanmar, and nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation and peaceful uses of nuclear energy.

Both leaders called for self-restraint in the East and South China Seas and peaceful resolutions of disputes in accordance with international law, including the UN convention on the law of the sea.

“Both leaders reconfirmed the importance of maintaining peace, stability, security and freedom of navigation in and over-flight over the South China Sea,” said the statement.

The summit commemorates 50 years of Asean-Japan friendship and cooperation.

Kishida welcomed Malaysia’s plan to establish an independent international cooperation agency, and confirmed support for technical training of Malaysian officials for the establishment of the agency. - FMT