PM Muhyiddin to join NAM summit via teleconference today

Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin will participate in the Online Summit Level Meeting of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) Contact Group in Response to COVID-19 today.

The Foreign Ministry, in a statement, said Muhyiddin’s participation in the teleconference would be his first appearance at the NAM arena since his appointment as the eighth Prime Minister of Malaysia.

"During the summit, Muhyiddin is scheduled to deliver a statement outlining Malaysia’s strategy in addressing the effects of COVID-19 at the national level.

"The prime minister is also expected to stress the importance of unity among NAM members in curbing the spread of COVID-19 and fighting the pandemic,” it said.

The statement said the meeting would be chaired by Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev, the NAM chairman for the ‪2019-2022‬ term.

The 74th United Nations General Assembly president, Tijjani Muhammad-Bande, World Health Organisation (WHO) director-general Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus and African Union Commission chairman Moussa Faki Mahamat will also attend the meeting.

United Nations secretary-general António Guterres is expected to deliver a pre-recorded message at the summit, the statement added.

It said the conference is expected to adopt a declaration as a sign of NAM solidarity in urging for stronger international cooperation in the fight against COVID-19.

The conference, themed United in Fighting COVID-19, will also stress the value of multilateralism in tackling challenges facing NAM members in the fight against the pandemic, it added.

-- BERNAMA