Malaysia pledges to maintain good ties with other countries
Newly-elected Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said on May 11 Malaysia, as a trading nation, will maintain good relations the international community without favouring any particular country.
KualaLumpur (VNA) - Newly-electedPrime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said on May 11 Malaysia, as a trading nation,will maintain good relations the international community without favouring anyparticular country or interfering with💝 their domestic affairs.
He said trade is important to the economy and Malaysiawill make efforts to ensure that the market for its products will be as largeas possible. The PM stressed that Malaysia will take a neutral stanceand would not take part in any move by big powers to impose sanctions againstcountries which disagreed with them. Malaysia pays attention to establishing relations withother countries in the world, he said.
MahathirMohamad was officially sworn in as Prime Minister of Malaysia on May 10 after ashock election victory, 15 years after he stood down. The 92-year-old man, whohad governed for more than two decades, became the world's oldest electedleader.
He came out of retirement and defected to the opposition to take on and beatformer protege Najib Razak. His historic win ousted the Barisan Nasional (BN)coalition, which has been in power since independence in 1957.
Official results showed that Mahathir's Pakatan Harapan (Alliance of Hope) hadwon 113 of the parliament's 222 seats, exceeding the simple majority requiredto rule.
Meanwhile, the ruling coalition Barisan Nasional headed by former PrimeMinister Najib Razak won only 79 seats.
Mahathir served as Pri🌠me Minister of Malaysia from 1981 to 2003.-VNA
The Election Commission of Malaysia on May 10 announced the official results of the country’s general election one day ago affirming the unexpected victory of the opposition alliance led by former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad.
The Republic of Korea (RoK), China and Japan agreed on May 3 to reinforce the regional financial safety net, along with members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), by launching a new financing facility programme meant to extend greater support in case of a financial crisis.
A technical issue combined with an extreme heatwave was blamed for a series of explosions at a military base that killed 20 soldiers and injured several others in Cambodia on April 27, the country’s Ministry of Defence said in a May 2 statement as reported by the Xinhua news agency.
The Customs Department of Thailand is scheduled to commence the collection of value-added tax (VAT) on imported goods sent via postal services, regardless of the goods value, starting in May.
A lecturer from Chulalongkorn University’s Faculty of Medicine has warned Thais to be more vigilant against COVID-19, saying infection rates appeare to be worsening with higher hospital admissions, deaths and severe cases.
Malaysia should harness the collective expertise and resources to drive sustainable growth and development of the halal industry, according to Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry Zafrul Abdul Aziz.
Laos has officially restored the 10% value-added tax (VAT) rate starting May 1, in a bid to support the country’s budget revenue and socio-economic development.
The ASEAN Future Forum 2024 (AFF 2024) entered its second plenary session in Hanoi on the afternoon of April 23, discussing ways to ensure comprehensive security for the people-centred ASEAN Community.
The first session of the ASEAN Future Forum 2024 (AFF 2024) in Hanoi on April 23 focused on fast and sustainable growth for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
The Canada-ASEAN Business Council (CABC) and the ASEAN Alliance on Carbon Markets (AACM) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to strengthen collaboration and accelerate the implementation of carbon crediting programmes across Southeast Asia.
ASEAN Secretary-General Kao Kim Hourn reaffirmed ASEAN leaders' commitment to empowering the youth to unleash their full potential when he had a dialogue with ASEAN youth in Hanoi on April 22 on the sidelines of the ASEAN Future Forum (AF 2024).
The Thai Government is being urged to increase the proportion of renewable power generation to more than the target of 50% set in the power development plan (PDP).
The Centre for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation (PVMBG) of Indonesia on April 21 lifted its tsunami advisory issued previously following the eruption of Mount Ruang in Sitaro district of North Sulawesi province.
Thailand expects to export about 1 million tonnes of durian, valued at an estimated 130 billion THB (3.53 billion USD) this year, with most of the shipments to China, according to Minister of Agriculture Thammanat Prompao.
The 72nd meeting of the ASEAN Working Group on Intellectual Property Cooperation (AWGIPC) and related meetings are being held by the Ministry of Science and Technology’s Intellectual Property Office (IPO) of Vietnam in the central city of Da Nang on April 22-26.
Enhancing regional food security and tackling the pressing challenges of climate change will be key agendas defining Malaysia’s ASEAN Chairmanship in 2025, Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat (lower house) Johari Abdul told the press on April 19.
Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad (Source: Kyodo) 
