Malaysia has called on major global powers to exercise their military capabilities responsibly and uphold international law consistently, with Defence Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin warning against selective adherence to the rules-based order.
“We do not presume to tell you how you should conduct your foreign policy and international affairs. But we expect you to do so while respecting international laws and rules-based orders, consistently, not selectively,” he said at the 37th Annual International Military Law and Operations Conference (MILOPS) 2026 in Kuala Lumpur.
Khaled said countries with significant military capabilities should be viewed as custodians of global peace and stability, a position that carried greater responsibilities and expectations.
He also stressed that meaningful Indo-Pacific dialogue depended on a peaceful and united ASEAN, with the region’s stability fundamental to the wider region. Southeast Asia, he said, should remain a Zone of Peace, Freedom and Neutrality (ZOPFAN).
“We do not believe that peace requires us to choose sides. Rather, peace requires us to engage all and respect all, while remaining guided by our principles and interests,” he said.
Khaled also urged countries engaging with ASEAN to respect the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia (TAC), which he described as the bloc’s code of conduct based on mutual respect, peaceful dispute settlement, non-interference and cooperation.
He said military forces should ultimately serve to prevent conflict rather than create it, with disputes resolved through dialogue, mediation and diplomacy wherever possible.
