KUALA LUMPUR: North Korea must stop its nuclear and ballistic missile programmes as well as desist from conducting further nuclear tests and missile launches, said Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Anifah Aman.
He said Malaysia strongly believes in strengthening and enhancing legislative and collective enforcement capabilities in confronting international security threats, in particular, the proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD), especially for non-State actors.
Anifah said it is therefore important for North Korea to comply fully with its international obligations in the interest of the maintenance of international peace and security.
“We remain steadfastly committed to our international obligations in the fields of disarmament and international security through various national, regional and international approaches.
“In this regard, Malaysia reiterates its strong condemnation of North Korea’s nuclear tests and missile launches, which seriously undermine the global disarmament and non-proliferation regime,” he said in presenting the national statement at the 72nd Session of the United Nations General Assembly (72nd UNGA) in New York on Friday.
Anifah noted that earlier this week, Malaysia joined other UN member states in signing the Treaty to Prohibit Nuclear Weapons, adding that the political and legal impact of the Treaty will steer the international community towards the elimination of nuclear weapons and the maintenance of a world free of nuclear weapons.
He said Malaysia is guided by the commitment of states to an instrument which is legally sound, feasible to implement and one that sends a powerful political message that nuclear weapons are categorically unacceptable.
Commenting further, Anifah pointed out that there is now a convergence of new security threats emerging from irregular migration and transnational criminal activities, which include terrorism, trafficking in persons, illicit drug trafficking, money laundering and cyber-crimes.
These threats, he said, have an increasingly regional and international impact, which are affecting the world’s economy and people’s lives in ways which the world has never experienced before.
“And for these reasons, Malaysia has taken significant efforts to improve our legislations and enforcement capabilities by adopting a holistic approach in preventing and combating these heinous crimes.
“Sadly, as we devote our attention to peace, decent life and a sustainable planet, there are people in this world who are suffering from horrifying crimes against humanity,” he added.
Since July 28, North Korean dictator Kim Jong-Un and US President Donald Trump have exchanged ever more heated threats over North Korea's rapid development of nuclear weapons that could strike the US mainland.
On Aug 9, Kim threatened a missile strike on the US territory of Guam in the South Pacific, where the US has military installations, according to South Korea's Yonhap News Agency.