Malaysia’s Defence Minister Warns Against Underestimating Iran-Israel Conflict
KUALA LUMPUR— Malaysia’s Defense Minister, Datuk Seri Khalid Nuruddin, has warned the rest of the world not to underestimate the growing conflict between Iran and Israel, stressing that it presents major threats to both regional and global security.
Khalid told reporters after a closed-door security meeting in Putrajaya on Saturday that he was very worried about how quickly military tensions were rising in the Middle East, especially Iran’s latest wave of drone and missile attacks on Israeli cities as part of Operation True Promise III.
“The war between Iran and Israel must not be taken lightly,” Khalid said. “The size of the recent attacks, especially the use of advanced combat drones and long-range ballistic missiles, marks the start of a dangerous new era with far-reaching effects.”
The Defense Minister made it clear that Malaysia is still not involved in the fighting but that the country is closely watching what is happening, especially how it might affect the safety of Muslim-majority countries and the world’s energy markets.
“There are more than two sides to this conflict.” Any mistake could lead to a bigger war in the area involving superpowers. This kind of chaos will definitely have an effect on Southeast Asia, including the safety of our trade and maritime routes, he said.
Khalid said again that Malaysia is still strongly supporting peace and justice in the region and asked for quick help from other countries to lower tensions. His message was for the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the United Nations to do more to stop more deaths.
The minister also said that Malaysia has stepped up its information sharing with other ASEAN countries so that they can better look out for new threats related to the conflict in the Middle East, such as cyberwarfare and extremist propaganda.
“Malaysia stands in solidarity with all those facing mistreatment, particularly the Palestinian people.” However, we also ask that everyone engaged be calm. “Another big war is not possible at this time,” Khalid said.
The world is very worried about Iran’s attack on Tel Aviv, Haifa, and other Israeli targets early Saturday morning, which was the first time such an event had ever happened. The attack was in reaction to Israeli strikes that killed several top Iranian military officials and scientists.