Malaysia, 2025

Now, I give the floor to His Excellency, Mr. Mohamed Hassan, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Malaysia Bismillahirrahmanirrahim, Madam President, Your Excellencies, May I begin by congratulating President Annalena Baerbock on being elected as the President of the 80th Session of the General Assembly. I also wish to thank His Excellency, Philip Moon Yang, for his leadership throughout the 79th Session of the General Assembly. Madam President, It is now the 80th Session of the General Assembly, yes, 80 years since our dreams of bright future gave birth to the United Nations. Humanity has imagined the future in many ways. Among other things, we imagined that in some of its darkest versions, information overload would numb critical thought while apathy takes over. I fear that this has come to pass. Eighty years after the end of the Second World War, we are watching in high definition as genocide unfolds around the world. Eighty years after the fall of the empires, colonialism is still alive, armed, funded and justified by some of the supposedly most liberal powers in the world. They have defended and supported the only party who has any real power in a conflict as it makes a fuss out of international law. As we approach the 80th anniversary of the United Nations, Madam President, I suppose I should say congratulations. But today, that word rings hollow. Should we congratulate ourselves on our inability to bring an end to the occupation of Palestine? Or should we congratulate ourselves for allowing a rogue state to undermine our charter and our efforts? In Gaza, the clock is ticking, the bombs are falling, and the light is fading. We have failed at least 70,000 people. Israel can no longer hide behind its pretense of victimhood. From London to Dhaka, from Paris to Sydney, from Montreal to Kuala Lumpur, populations have spoken out in grief and outrage. More and more people are standing up for the truth that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza. Remember, the eyes of the world are upon us. We must take action now, Madam President, now. Sanction Israel. The metastasis of Israel's brutality in the Middle East cannot go on. Their latest assault on Doha was not merely an attack on a few representatives of Hamas. It was an attack conducted on another state's soil and an insult to the efforts of all who have attempted to mediate. And it is a signal that Israel's violence will continue to destabilize the region. The effect of this will spill over to the rest of the world. The atrocities may have begun with Palestine, but they certainly will not end with Palestine. As the Middle East grows ever more dangerous for its residents, we will feel the reverberations all over the world. And this is why simply advocating for a two-state solution is not enough, Madam President. Malaysia will agree to any measures of support for the Palestinian people, including the New York Declaration. But let us be clear. Let us be clear there are only three real answers to this conflict. Number one, to take concrete action against the occupying force. Two, to lend our long-term support to the development of a self-governing Palestinian state. And number three, to reform the United Nations and ensure that such a travesty of justice never happens again. Madam President, repeated failures of the Security Council to fulfil the will of the General Assembly must be met with strong resistance. We must continue to demand accountability from the permanent members of the United Nations Security Council through Resolution 76, Oblique 272, or popularly known as the Veto Initiative. And we must pursue results through Resolution 377A, that is uniting for peace. No more shall we quietly accept the dismissal of our collective voice. We must question and challenge the veto. We must free the Security Council from this humiliating paralysis. And we must keep the United Nations a relevant and effective international organisation and global guardian of peace. Madam President, over the course of our chairmanship of ASEAN this year, Malaysia too has learned of the colossal efforts that peace requires. As a unique example of an inclusive form of multilateralism, ASEAN has embraced change, expanded our membership and engaged with the world over the past 58 years. And this is why it has been Malaysia's honour and our greatest task yet to take on such a treacherous challenge this year. When conflict threatened to spiral between our neighbours, ASEAN did not stand idle. We stepped in, convened both sides in Malaysia, and implemented a ceasefire, one that ASEAN is now ensuring takes root through active monitoring on the ground. Yes, challenges remain. But our message is clear. ASEAN will stay at the table, urging both states to honour their commitments. For there is no conflict, whether interstate or intrastate, that is worth risking the stability of our home. This is why our efforts to cultivate security and stability in Myanmar and to restore credibility to five-point concessions must continue. ASEAN is deeply disappointed that the agreed-upon ceasefires in Myanmar have been broken in some areas, and that violence continues to endanger civilians. Those in power have a responsibility to remember that Myanmar is a part of a region, not an isolated country. There is a bright and safe future for all of our peoples if we work together in good faith towards a Myanmar-owned, Myanmar-led resolution to the crisis in the country. Madam President, as ASEAN's focus deepens on bolstering security, strengthening economic resilience and advancing sustainability goals across the region, we will address not only our internal crisis, but also from beyond. The South China Sea must not be used as leverage in strategic competition. Southeast Asia and its waters become a theatre for rivalry between superpowers. We therefore urge all parties to fully comply with UNCLOS and to avoid actions that could provoke miscalculation or conflict in the waters we share. We will also continue to champion the rights and the needs of the global South at large. Madam President, for far too long, the global South has borne the brunt of unequal economic policies that marginalize and prevent developing nations from participating fairly in the global economy. Even today, the global South faces a staggering financing gap for sustainable development despite being home to the world's most vulnerable populations. The irony is painful, Madam President. We constitute the world's majority yet remain unrepresented in decision-making, underserved in development financing and sidelined in global governance. These imbalances must be corrected. The voices, needs and aspirations of the global South are not secondary. Remember this, we cannot build a fairer international order without the global South at its centre. Malaysia will continue to advocate for dignity, equity and opportunity for all developing nations. Madam President, Excellencies, the UN has served the world for 80 years, but the world we live in is shifting beyond any recognition from what it was back then. The task that we now face is an existential one, for the question of Palestinians has haunted the UN for nearly its entire life. Eighty years of the United Nations and 77 years of the ethnic cleansing of the Palestinians. I cannot emphasize this enough, Madam President, if we cannot resolve this, the citizens of the world will lose faith in us and the international order. Because there is no longer any way to deny that this is modern-day colonization, only the formerly colonized have been able to see it for what it is since the start. It is a genocide, and it is a genocide dressed in the cape of Western tolerance. For us to remain relevant, we cannot move forward on the habits of the past. We must summon the same courage that built this organization from the ruins of war. To conclude, Madam President, Malaysia believes that three urgent reforms are key to our survival. First, we must limit, if not abolish, the veto. We must challenge it each and every time that it is wielded, particularly in cases of crimes against humanity. Second, authority must flow back to the General Assembly. And as the most inclusive body of this House, it should be allowed to serve as the conscience and voice of the world, unimpeded. And third, we must redesign global financing mechanisms to ensure transparency and fairness for the global South. Reform is no longer a choice, it is our imperative. Madam President, to be better together, we must change together. Billions of lives depend on whether we succeed. Madam President, I thank you.