PM: Malaysia to follow diplomatic process on Nick Adams' ambassadorship
He said Malaysia would abide by existing diplomatic protocols when the time arrives.
'As for the matter concerning Nick Adams, we will follow due process.
'It is still too early, and of course, the government will give it due consideration while maintaining good relations between Malaysia and the United States,' he told reporters after performing Friday prayers at Surau Al-Istiqlal in Presint 14 here.
Last week, US President Donald Trump announced on social media that he will nominate Adams to the role, after praising the latter as 'an incredible Patriot and very successful entrepreneur' whose devotion to America serves as an inspiration.
MORE TO COME
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
17 minutes ago
- The Star
Analysis-Rwandan rebels' fate clouds Trump's vision for mineral-rich Congo
(Reuters) -Moves to end fighting in eastern Congo that are essential to U.S. President Donald Trump's plans for a mining bonanza in the region are meant to get underway by Sunday, but the future of a small rebel group has emerged as one of the major obstacles. A U.S.-brokered peace agreement signed last month by the Congolese and Rwandan foreign ministers was designed to halt violence that escalated this year with a lightning advance in the Democratic Republic of Congo by M23 rebels. Rwanda denies allegations from the U.N. and Western governments that it is fighting alongside the M23 rebels to gain access to Congo's minerals. Rwanda says its troops are there to tackle what it describes as an existential threat from thousands of Rwandan Hutu rebels known as the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR). Security experts and diplomats say the FDLR, which includes remnants of Rwanda's former army and militias that carried out the 1994 Rwandan genocide, boasts only a few hundred combatants and is not a significant battlefield force. But the peace agreement explicitly requires Congo to "neutralise" the FDLR as Rwanda withdraws from Congolese territory, underscoring the group's importance to the fate of Trump's diplomacy. Both the Congolese operations against the FDLR and the Rwandan withdrawal are supposed to start by Sunday and conclude by the end of September. U.N. experts said in a report this month that Rwanda, along with M23, is trying to seize control of mineral-rich territory. Kigali responded that the presence of the "genocidal" FDLR "necessitates the defence posture in our border areas". The U.N. experts also accused the Congolese military of relying on the FDLR in its fight against M23. A spokesperson for Congo's government did not respond to a request for comment on that question, but Kinshasa has said it is on board with ensuring any threat posed by the FDLR is "definitively eradicated", including by voluntary disarmament. It has also accused Rwanda of using the FDLR as a pretext for deploying on Congolese territory. Congolese researcher Josaphat Musamba said it was not possible for Congo to rid the region of FDLR fighters given that M23 holds much of the territory where the FDLR now operates. "It would be feasible if the Rwandan-backed rebellion were not active and threatening to conquer other territories," said Musamba, a Ph.D. candidate at Ghent University who is from eastern Congo and studies the conflict there. Jason Stearns, a political scientist at Simon Fraser University in Canada who specialises in Africa's Great Lakes region, said lack of progress against the FDLR could be cited by Rwanda as a reason to keep its troops deployed in eastern Congo past September, throwing off Washington's timeline. "It would be fairly easy for Rwanda to claim that Congo is not abiding by its side of the deal - that its operations against the FDLR are not serious enough, have not been successful enough - and therefore to drag its feet," Stearns said. A spokesperson for Rwanda's government did not respond to a request for comment on its approach to the FDLR. Rwandan President Paul Kagame said on July 4 that Rwanda was committed to implementing the deal, but that it could fail if Congo did not live up to its promises to neutralise the FDLR. APPEAL TO TRUMP Trump said on July 9 the Congolese and Rwandan presidents would travel to the United States in the "next couple of weeks" to sign the peace agreement. They are also expected to sign bilateral economic packages that would bring billions of dollars of investment into countries rich in tantalum, gold, cobalt, copper, lithium and other minerals. There has been no further word on a date. While Washington has hosted negotiations between Congo and Rwanda, Qatar has hosted separate direct talks between Congo and M23. On Saturday the two sides agreed to sign a separate peace deal by August 18. M23 currently has no concrete plans to withdraw from the territory it controls. The FDLR has urged Trump not to green-light a Congolese offensive against it. A July 2 letter to Trump from Victor Byiringiro, the FDLR's acting president, said attacking the FDLR would jeopardise the safety of Congolese civilians as well as more than 200,000 Rwandan refugees. In written responses to questions from Reuters, FDLR spokesperson Cure Ngoma said only "a frank, sincere, and inclusive dialogue among Rwandans" could bring peace, though Rwanda has repeatedly ruled out such talks with the group. Trump expects Congo and Rwanda to abide by the peace deal "which will foster lasting stability and prosperity in the region," Anna Kelly, a White House spokesperson, said in response to Reuters questions about the FDLR's future. "All armed groups must lay down their arms and work within the framework of the peace process." The fighting has killed thousands and displaced hundreds of thousands more this year, while escalating the risk of a return to the kind of full-scale regional war which led to the deaths of millions of Congolese in 1998-2003. (Reporting by Sonia RolleyAdditional reporting and writing by Robbie Corey-BouletEditing by Philippa Fletcher)
The Star
42 minutes ago
- The Star
White House unveils artificial intelligence policy plan
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The White House released an artificial intelligence (AI) policy plan on Wednesday spelling out priorities for the U.S. to achieve "global dominance" in the sector. U.S. President Donald Trump's plan calls for open-source and open-weight AI models to be made freely available by developers for anyone in the world to download and modify. The plan also calls for the Commerce Department to research Chinese AI models for alignment with Chinese Communist Party talking points and censorship. As previously reported by Reuters, it adds the federal government should not allow AI-related federal funding to be directed toward states with "burdensome" regulations. (Reporting by Chris Sanders, writing by Maiya Keidan)
New Straits Times
an hour ago
- New Straits Times
Saifuddin: PM prioritises economic recovery before fulfilling promises
KUALA LUMPUR: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim not only fulfils his promises but also takes the necessary time, as economic recovery is a prerequisite for any announcement he intends to make. Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said the prime minister took some time to fulfil his election promises due to the challenging economic conditions when he first assumed office. "He inherited a country grappling with ballooning national debt, high inflation, rising unemployment, and relatively low foreign direct investment (FDI). "As such, he needed time to address these issues, which is why he could not deliver on his promises sooner. "But now, with inflation at 1.5 per cent, FDI at a record high and the ringgit strengthening against the US dollar, the strong economic indicators have created the right environment for him to now give back to the people. "He ensured that recovery came first. Only then could he begin delivering these much-anticipated benefits to the people," he said when met at the Parliament building. He said this when asked to comment on the announcement made by the prime minister earlier today. He added that Anwar's approach was marked by fiscal discipline, anti-corruption efforts, and strict control over public spending. "The prime minister is committed to curbing leakages, avoiding wastage, ensuring there is no overspending, and, most importantly, not tolerating any form of corruption. The goal has always been to restore the country's financial position," Saifuddin said. Among the key initiatives announced by the prime minister today were one-off RM100 cash aid for all adult citizens via their MyKad under the Sumbangan Asas Rahmah (Sara) programme, which will be implemented for the first time; maintaining current toll rates; expanding Jualan Rahmah Madani; and RON95 petrol price to be lowered to RM1.99 per litre.
