JAKARTA,
April 8 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - Malaysian Prime Minister
Mahathir Mohamad said on Sunday, April 7, he will raise the
Palestinian issue in his meeting with U.S. President George W. Bush in
Washington next month, news agencies reported.
The
Prime Minister said he would raise the issue as he had promised the
Palestine representative to explain the atrocities inflicted by the
Israelis on the Palestinians, Bernama news agency reported.
"I've
promised the Palestinian representative to bring up their problem with
Bush," he told reporters.
“An
official announcement hasn't been made, but there is a visit planned
to the U.S.,” the spokesman for the Premier said. The date has yet
to be confirmed, but 'would definitely be in the second week of
May.”
“They
will be discussing a lot of issues in the few days of the visit,
definitely including terrorism and bilateral ties,” the official
told Agence France-Presse (AFP).
Last
week, the Malaysian prime minister said that if he went to Washington,
he expected to hold talks with Bush. It would come amid warming
Malaysia-U.S. relations following the September 11 attacks and a shift
in focus away from rights issues towards those of security.
Besides
the Palestinian issue, Mahathir said the meeting would also provide an
opportunity for him to explain the stand of the Organization of
Islamic Conference (OIC) in efforts to fight terrorism.
He
said the invitation was also a good opportunity for him to explain
Malaysia's stand on terrorism. "It's good that he has invited me.
I can give my views on various issues to Bush," he said.
On
the Palestinian issue, Mahathir said that Israel looked like it would
ignore the urgings of the international community to withdraw its
forces from the Palestinian territories inside the West Bank.
He
however said: “we can only urge we cannot go to war”, when asked
how Malaysia could help the Palestinians by reporters, AFP reported.
