The government earlier explained that inviting United States (US) President Donald Trump to the 47th ASEAN Summit would give member nations a chance to directly state their stance on Palestine.
As we reported before, Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil said Trump’s presence would let ASEAN countries show firm support for Palestine and call out the double standards of certain nations in dealing with the matter.
“He could easily raise the tariffs to 90%”
Many have already weighed in on the matter, from former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad to PAS President Abdul Hadi Awang, and now another former politician has warned about the negative repercussions of withdrawing Trump’s invitation.
Former Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin (KJ) and his co-host Zaidel Baharuddin discussed the matter on their Keluar Sekejap podcast, warning about the risks Malaysia might face if the government pulls back its invitation for Trump to attend the 47th ASEAN Summit in Kuala Lumpur this month.
Donald Trump
KJ stressed that while Malaysia must stand firm on the principle of solidarity with Palestine, it also needs to navigate Trump’s presence carefully.
“He’ll definitely retaliate, maybe by slapping a 90% tariff or introducing new sanctions. For him, it’s nothing. Malaysia is small to him. He could just say, ‘Alright, you withdrew the invite, I’ll raise tariffs to 90%.'”
Khairy Jamaluddin
KJ is counting on Anwar to “advise” Trump
Khairy also voiced confidence that Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s charisma could help in “advising” Trump directly, with the hope of pushing him to stop the genocide in Gaza.
At the same time, Khairy didn’t mince words, pointing out that Trump is a leader who deserves condemnation for backing the genocide.
“We need to play our cards right while holding firm to our principles. So when he’s here, Anwar should say it straight: ‘Welcome to Malaysia for ASEAN, Mr President. We appreciate the help your administration gave during the Cambodia–Thailand conflict. Give him some credit first. Then follow up with, ‘But we have very serious concerns about your support for Israel.’ Say it right to his face,” he added.
Zaidel Baharuddin
You can catch the discussion starting at the 54:14 mark:
What do you think of this? Let us know down in the comments!
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