Malaysians who may still be in Ukraine advised to contact embassy in Poland

JOHOR BAHRU: Malaysians who may still be in Ukraine are advised to contact the Malaysian embassy in Warsaw, Poland should they need any assistance.

Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Abdullah said this was important as all affairs of the Malaysian embassy in Ukraine have been suspended after the officials were evacuated and brought home from the conflict-stricken country.

"There may be one or two Malaysians there who may not be registered with the embassy and our advice is for them to contact the nearest Malaysian embassy, which is in Warsaw, Poland.

"We don't compel any Malaysian abroad to register with the embassy, but when disaster or conflict strikes, like in Ukraine now, we encourage them to do so.

"Who knows, there may be one or two there and if they need help, we will help, as usual," he told a press conference here today.

On Malaysia's vote of support at the United Nations (UN) General Assembly emergency special session on the adoption of the UN resolution on Ukraine, Saifuddin said the vote was guided by Malaysia's principles of respect for independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of a country in accordance with the UN Charter.

"Malaysia has good relationships with Ukraine and Russia and we understand the background of the ongoing conflict, so guided by the principles of respect for the country's sovereignty and territorial integrity, we voted in favour of the resolution," he said.

Earlier today, Wisma Putra in a statement said that Malaysia has, on Wednesday, voted in favour of the 11th Emergency Special Session of the United Nations (UN) General Assembly which adopted the resolution entitled "Aggression Against Ukraine".

The statement said Malaysia, in its Explanation of Vote, reiterated its commitment to the principles and purposes of the UN Charter and to the inviolability of the fundamental principles of territorial integrity and sovereignty of a country.

The resolution, which was adopted by a majority of the 193-member UN General Assembly, received 141 affirmative votes, 5 against and 35 abstentions.

The resolution demands that "the Russian Federation immediately cease its use of force against Ukraine and to refrain from any further unlawful threat of use of force against any UN member state."

Meanwhile, Saifuddin said that Malaysia did not recognise the claim made by the so-called descendants of the last Sultan of Sulu, let alone participate in the purported arbitration proceedings in Paris.

As such, he said Sabah's position in Malaysia will not be affected by the claim and that the Sabah state government neither recognised the claim nor the decision of the arbitration court.

According to a media report, a French arbitration court on Monday ruled that Malaysia had violated a treaty signed in 1878 and ordered to pay at least US$14.92 billion (RM62.6 billion) to the descendants of the last Sulu Sultan.

A joint statement issued by the Foreign Ministry and the Attorney General's Chambers on Wednesday stated that the Malaysian government did not participate in the purported arbitration proceedings that led to the award.

It said the subject matter of the claim was not commercial in nature, thus cannot be subjected to arbitration.

-- BERNAMA