KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia's participation in BRICS will not affect its role in other international organisations and is instead viewed as a platform to expand markets for local goods.
Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan said Malaysia needed to reduce risks and diversify opportunities to strengthen its economy amid uncertain global geopolitics.
"Malaysia's participation in BRICS does not dilute its role in other international organisations, such as the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) and the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec).
"In fact, we were recently invited to Apec and as a guest country at the G20 by the Brazilian government. We voiced the same concern, which is that the gap between developed countries and the Global South is very significant.
"In response to Pulai, Malaysia's role is not diminished but rather expanded, especially in the economic sphere, by opening up the country's markets," he said in response to Ahmad Fadhli Shaari (PN-Pasir Mas), who had asked how Malaysia positions itself within BRICS while avoiding the appearance of being against another bloc.
He also inquired how Malaysia could integrate its BRICS participation agenda into the broader Asian context, given the existence of other regional economic platforms like Apec.
Mohamad added: "We need to adopt what is called a 'de-risk policy'. We should not overly rely on traditional markets. If something happens to those markets, we will be caught off guard.
"Therefore, we need to broaden and diversify our markets. So, if anything happens, we will be prepared.
"In today's unpredictable geopolitical climate, we cannot continue relying on just one country or system as our ally to buy our goods. We need to expand our markets."
Earlier, Suhaizan Kaiat (PH-Pulai) asked about Malaysia's progress in joining BRICS and its potential impact on relations with G7 countries.
In response, Mohamad said Malaysia's participation in multilateral frameworks such as BRICS strengthened confidence, discretion and understanding among countries.
"Malaysia's participation in BRICS offers an opportunity to reinforce the country's position on the global stage, complementing Malaysia's active role in multilateral frameworks, such as Asean, the United Nations, OIC, NAM and G77.
"Malaysia is committed to maintaining good relations with all international partners, continuously utilising multilateral platforms to promote the country's economic and diplomatic interests."
On Oct 24, Malaysia was recognised as one of 13 countries added as a partner country in BRICS, a bloc that accounts for one-fifth of global trade. According to a post from @BRICSInfo on X, the 13 nations are not yet full members.
The other 12 nations are Algeria, Belarus, Bolivia, Cuba, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Nigeria, Thailand, Turkiye, Uganda, Uzbekistan and Vietnam.
On July 28, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim confirmed that Malaysia had applied to join BRICS by submitting its application to Russia.
On the sanctions imposed by the United States on several companies based in Malaysia, Mohamad said the country did not recognise the unilateral sanctions imposed by the US on Russia, as these were not endorsed by the UN.
"We did receive a notice from the US regarding sanctions on several companies in this country, based on the claim that these companies were exporting materials that could be used to strengthen Russia's military equipment.
"Three of the six companies are not manufacturers, but trading companies. The issue here is not the sanctions themselves, but whether action can be taken under the Customs Act for incorrect declaration forms.The mistake lies with the companies for failing to declare their goods properly."
On Nov 3, it was reported that six Malaysian companies were sanctioned by the United States on Oct 30 for operating or having operated in Russia's manufacturing sector.
LINK: https://www.nst.com.my/news/nation/2024/11/1128922/six-malaysian-compani...
They were among the 400 entities and individuals sanctioned for allegedly "enabling Russia's prosecution of its illegal war", according to a statement by the US State Department.