Foreign policy framework to focus on health diplomacy

KUALA LUMPUR: Health diplomacy will be the focus of the foreign policy framework for the new administration which will guide Malaysia's approaches in managing the COVID-19 pandemic and its impacts for now and the next three to five years.

Foreign Minister Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah said he will be organising a joint meeting with the Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin and the Senior Minister of International Trade and Industry Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali to discuss the framework.

"Health diplomacy will be one of the more important focus of priorities and we will divide this into two sub themes - what we need to do now as we are facing the (COVID-19) pandemic and the second part will be what do we do post-pandemic," he told a press conference in conjunction with his visit to to the Institute of Strategic and International Studies (ISIS), here on Wednesday.

Last Friday, Saifuddin chaired the first meeting of the Consultative Council on Foreign Policy (CCFP), which serves as a platform for the formation of the foreign policy framework, involving senior ministry officials, business representatives, civil society and academia.

He pointed out that Malaysia's approach has to be inter-disciplinary including public health, international affairs, management, law, economics, trade policy as well as science and technology.

"ISIS has done some good works on this area. I have scanned through the report which I received this morning. I think we are on track to come out with the framework, especially dealing with health diplomacy," he said.

Saifuddin, who returned to the foreign affairs portfolio for his second stint, announced the establishment of the foreign policy framework for the new administration on his first day in office on Sept 1.

-- BERNAMA