M’sia ready to understand US Treasury’s concerns, says Fahmi

Government spokesman Fahmi Fadzil said the relevant minister will issue a statement after the engagement with US Treasury department’s top sanctions official Brian Nelson is held.

PUTRAJAYA: The Malaysian government is ready to understand any concerns shared by the US Treasury department’s top sanctions official Brian Nelson, says government spokesman Fahmi Fadzil.

This follows a Reuters report that the US Treasury under-secretary for terrorism and financial intelligence will be in Malaysia this week as Washington seeks to combat funding for Iran and its proxy groups as well as evasion of its sanctions on Russia.

Quoting a source, the news outlet had reported an uptick in money moving to Iran and its proxies, including Hamas, through the Malaysian financial system.

Nelson is expected to discuss the US’s concerns and the sanctions risk that such activity poses during his trip here.

“I would just say that the Malaysian government is prepared to have an engagement with (Nelson) and understand the concerns being raised.

“It’s something that we view seriously and we want to assert that Malaysia, as a sovereign nation, complies with any sanctions imposed by the United Nations,” he said at a press conference here.

Fahmi said the report had drawn the attention of Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and the Cabinet, adding that the relevant minister will issue a statement after the engagement is held.

In December, the US Treasury imposed sanctions on four Malaysia-based companies it accused of being fronts supporting Iran’s production of drones.

Washington recently imposed further sanctions targeting Iran, including over Iranian drones used by Russia in the war in Ukraine, as the US seeks to ratchet up pressure on Tehran after its attack on Israel.

Meanwhile, Fahmi said the police investigation into a Bloomberg article about purported plans to build a casino in Forest City, Johor, had nothing to do with Putrajaya.

He said Bloomberg journalist Ram Anand was summoned by the police in response to a report filed by Berjaya Corporation Bhd.

Investigations are being carried out under Section 4(1) of the Sedition Act, Section 500 of the Penal Code and Section 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998.

Bloomberg had reported that Anwar met Berjaya founder Vincent Tan and Genting Group chief executive Lim Kok Thay to discuss plans for a casino in Forest City.

Separately, Fahmi warned that the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) will take action against any netizen who publishes posts that personally attack national football players and others associated with the sport.

He also said the defence ministry will release the preliminary report on the two navy helicopters that crashed in Lumut, Perak, tomorrow. Ten people died in the incident.