Malaysia hopes for approriate measures to de-escalate tensions among OIC members

Malaysia's Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Anifah Aman when addressing the Extraordinary Meeting of the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers on Thursday (Jan 21) in Jeddah following the recent mob attacks on Saudi Arabia’s diplomatic missions in Iran, called for feuds among Muslim countries to stop.

"It is time to be open, frank and honest with ourselves that there are persisting problems between our fellow Muslim countries. The feuds among us must stop. It is a disservice to the Muslim Ummah (Muslim community)," he said in a statement made available here.

"We are so preoccupied with the problems among us that we lose sight of our objective to ensure the progress of our Ummah," he added.

Anifah said the OIC should be the rallying point that brings the Muslims and the member countries together in the spirit of brotherliness and cooperation.

Therefore, Malaysia called on all concerned OIC member countries to look at ways to enhance and strengthen the bonds of unity and solidarity among Muslims and the OIC member states, he said.

"We must cease any actions that are detrimental and unbeneficial to the Ummah. Such actions would only weaken our unity and solidarity. Undoubtedly, we will be the ultimate losers," he said.

Malaysia, he said, shared the same concern with other countries over the recent attacks by protesters on the diplomatic and consular premises of Saudi Arabia in Iran.

These attacks on Saudi Arabia's Embassy in Teheran and its Consulate-General in Mashhad on Jan 4 had caused serious damage to the diplomatic missions which was clearly against the 1961 Vienna Convention, he said.

"We call on the concerned countries to observe this Convention in which we are all party to and to take necessary measures to ensure that the sanctity of diplomatic missions remains paramount," he said.

Malaysia reiterated the importance for all concerned parties to remain calm over the recent incidents and strive for the maintenance of peace and security.

"Instability and conflicts would only provide fertile ground for the unscrupulous to flourish," he said.

In this regard, Malaysia called on member states to refrain from taking actions that would undermine efforts towards preserving peace and security.