'I prioritise bilateral talks over ceremonies,' Mohamad claps back at KJ

KUALA LUMPUR - Malaysia successfully manages bilateral talks with 13 countries on addressing several security issues in the Indo-Pacific region.

Defence Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan today chided former Umno youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin, who claimed that Malaysia missed the opportunity to talk on the Indo-Pacific region issue – following the absence of his speech at the Shangri-La Dialogue ceremony in Singapore recently.

"I prioritise bilateral talks rather than talk ceremonies.

“In fact, I managed to hold bilateral talks with 13 countries with their respective defence ministers, including the American defence secretary, the China defence minister, and many European countries who are interested in knowing Malaysia's position in the Indo-Pacific, specifically in the Taiwan Strait and also the South China Sea.

"There is nothing better than a face-to-face meeting," Mohamad, who is also Umno deputy president remarked during his visit to the media room at the 2023 Umno General Assembly, today.

Previously, Khairy on the ‘Keluar Sekejap’ podcast with former Umno youth vice-chairman Shahril Hamdan said, "Unfortunately, he (Mohamad) chose not to speak".

The former health minister also claimed that Mohamad was offered to speak at the event but did not do so and only participated in a closed roundtable conference and a press conference with other defence ministers.