KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia has called on Western superpowers to play their role in maintaining peace and stability in the South China Sea and not bring Middle East-like proxy wars to Asia.
Defence Minister Mohamad Sabu called on the European nations to engage in discussions to maintain the peace in the South China Sea.
He said despite Russia’s weakened economy, the country had weapons, including a new generation of missiles.
In view of this, he said European nations were modernising weapons to compete with Russia.
He added that with the exception of the geopolitical tension brought about by the Cold War, there were no other major conflict between Europe and Russia since World War Two.
“We are proud of the progress and peace achieved in Europe.
“However, I emphasise that proxy wars are being fought in the Middle East. Groups are being funded and sponsored, of which, Libya is a clear example of this.
“I call upon the Americans and the Europeans to not bring proxy wars to Asia, especially in the South China Sea.
“We are aware that China is an emerging superpower. Malaysia will continue to engage with the country,” he said.
Mohamad said this at a dinner event on Saturday held in conjunction with the Munich Security Conference 2020 (MSC2020) in Germany, which was attended by military top brass and industry players.
The MSC2020, which takes place between Feb 14 and 16, was held to address pressing global security concerns, including arms control, challenges to regional security, missile dialogue initiatives, multi-lateralism and global power shifting.
The Defence Ministry said Mohamad’s attendance at the conference was part of the credible partnership as outlined in the Defence White Paper (DWP).
It comes under the framework of defence diplomacy initiative to promote positive defence relations through bilateral and multilateral platforms in addressing regional and international defence and security issues of common concerns.
“This session was aimed at sharing the essence of DWP, which outlined a long-term defence strategy to ensure Malaysia remain as a secure, sovereign and prosperous nation,” it said.
During his visit, Mohamad met the Malaysian diaspora in Germany.