ONLINE 23 & 26 Sep – The Malaysian Youth Council (MBM) was invited to attend a round table discussion and conference focusing on efforts we as a country could do to support the people of Afghanistan moving forward. This discussion was centered around Malaysia’s official stance on the matter being, Malaysia shall maintain a cautious optimism and will engage the Taliban but will observe the direction of the Taliban government.
The discussion involved various stakeholders on the matter as well as experts including the former Minister of Foreign Affairs, YB Dato’ Saifuddin Abdullah who also chimed in to share his insights on the matter. During the discussion, excellent points alongside valid concerns were raised regarding Malaysia’s decision to engage the Taliban among them being, the common Malaysian people are worried as it might give off the wrong message that Malaysia supports the Taliban regime. Hence, it is of upmost importance that any and all aid or envoy Malaysia sends to Afghanistan must be coupled with the right media attachment to show that Malaysia is committed to the Malaysian people.
Regardless, it was unanimously agreed upon that the situation in Taliban is still fluid, hence there are risks associated for Malaysia as major global powers also have their own national interests therefore, Malaysia absolutely do not want to be caught up in a geopolitical conflict. Moving forward, we must be careful with how we thread the situation and have counter-measures should the Taliban government disintegrate.
The RTD and Conference were organized by Global Peace Mission (GPM) Malaysia and supported by Majlis Belia Malaysia and others.
Note by :
Idzham Haqim Mat Rasid
Secretary of International Affairs & SDG Bureau
Malaysian Youth Council
