Malaysia to follow UN decision on any Malbatt deployment to Yemen, says defence minister

KOTA TINGGI, Sept 20 — Malaysia will follow any decision made by the United Nations (UN) if there is a proposal to deploy the Malaysian Battalion (Malbatt) peacekeeping force to Yemen, Defence Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin stated. Mohamed Khaled, who also represents Kota Tinggi as an MP, emphasized that Malaysia would not make such a unilateral decision and that 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," he told reporters after attending a local celebration.

According to Mohamed Khaled, peacekeeping forces are typically deployed after the conflicting parties have agreed to a peace settlement, with the forces responsible for ensuring that the terms of the settlement are upheld by all parties. He gave the example of the UN's deployment in Lebanon, where the troops were meant to uphold the peace terms.

However, he noted that the situation in Yemen is different, as the conflict is still ongoing. The UN has never deployed forces to participate in a war, he stressed, as this would 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 warned.

There is no question of Malaysia unilaterally deploying troops to Yemen, he said, as any decision would have to wait for a UN determination. The escalation in Yemen, with intense fighting along the western coast and the Bab al-Mandab Strait forcing over 100,000 people to flee their homes, is the context for this decision.