Malaysia is facing the repercussions of its Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad casting aspersions on India for its move to abrogate 370 and 35A as Indian businessmen have found Indonesia as the new destination to purchase palm oil
Bengaluru: By now, Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad would have realised the churlishness and the needlessness of the statement he made against India’s move to abrogate Articles 370 and 35A at the United Nations General Assembly.
As a consequence of his criticism, Indian buyers have stepped back from purchasing palm oil from Malaysia.
To put the record straight, India is a top buyer of palm oil from Malaysia. You might be astonished to note that India purchased about 3.9 million tonnes of palm oil between January and September, amounting to $2 billion.
Bipul Chatterjee, head of the CUTS Centre for International Trade, Economics and Environment said, “India will replace Malaysian palm oil imports by buying more oil from Indonesia and increasing edible oil supplies from Ukraine. It’s the first time that India is using its heft as a trade partner to express unhappiness over a political statement,” as reported by Times of India.
Though the government has not made any official response to the inimical statements, Indian businessmen have shifted to Indonesia with fears that PM Modi will curb purchases from Malaysia.
Even many citizens are extremely vexed with the way Malaysia has expressed its displeasure over the abrogation.
#BoycottMalaysia was also trending on Twitter as people openly campaigned not to travel to Malaysia and shun its products as they feel the Malaysian Prime Minister has insulted India.
Malaysian Prime Minister reacted thus: “This is a reaction from traders, so we can’t respond to it. If the government launched a boycott or something like that, then we will have to work diplomatically perhaps to reduce the kind of action they have taken.”
Malaysian Prime Minister had said, “Despite the UN resolution on J&K, the country has been invaded and occupied. There may be reasons for this action but it is still wrong. The problem must be solved by peaceful means. India should work with Pakistan to resolve this problem. Ignoring the UN would lead to other forms of disregard for the UN and the Rule of Law.”
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