KOTA TINGGI, Sept 20 — Malaysia will be guided by any decision made by the United Nations (UN) should there be a proposal to deploy the Malaysian Battalion (MALBATT) peacekeeping force to Yemen amid the ongoing conflict there, said Defence Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin.
Malaysia would not make such a decision unilaterally, as any action must be based on a UN decision.
“Malaysia’s decision will be guided by the decision made by the UN, rather than us acting on our own.
“So it has to be the UN that decides whether to send a peacekeeping force or whatever,” he told the media after attending the Kota Tinggi parliamentary constituency-level Maulidur Rasul celebration today.
Khaled added that peacekeeping forces were normally deployed after parties to a conflict had agreed to a peace settlement, with the forces tasked with ensuring that the terms of the settlement were observed by all parties.
He cited the deployment of peacekeeping forces in Lebanon as an example, saying their role was to ensure that the terms of the peace settlement were respected.
However, the situation in Yemen was different as the conflict and fighting were still ongoing.
“The UN has never deployed any force to take part in a war. This is a conflict; a war is still going on,” Khaled said.
Deploying forces while the war was still ongoing could expose personnel to the risk of losing their lives.
“If you go into the middle of it, there will be casualties and loss of life,” he said.
As such, there is no question of Malaysia unilaterally deploying troops to Yemen and that any decision would have to await a UN determination.
The development comes amid a recent escalation in Yemen, with intense fighting along the western coast and the Bab al-Mandab Strait forcing more than 100,000 people to flee their homes.
