ALL 10 Asean member countries should forge closer corporation and share intelligence information to combat the threat posed by the so-called IS militant group in the region, Philippine Ambassador to Malaysia, J Eduardo Malaya said.
He said the group was believed to have turned some ports and airports in Asean countries into a transit point for their militants on their way to a third country.
“We share the concern of Malaysia that the IS poses threat to the region.
“All Asean leaders can raise the issue and work together to address the IS threat. We can stop them from propagating the ideology continuously,” he told Bernama ahead of the 26th Asean Summit at the Philippine Embassy.
Eduardo said Malaysia’s concept of moderation was the key to battle IS threat in the region.
“Emphasising moderation is an effective anecdote to the seeming attractiveness of the ideology being propagated by IS,” he said.
Eduardo added that besides working closely with the relevant authorities in Malaysia, Indonesia, Brunei and Singapore, the Philippines’ law enforcement and security officials were monitoring closely the IS activities.
Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak on Thursday said Asean needs to act collectively in handling the IS threat as it could not be countered by member countries acting alone.
With the theme ‘Our People, Our Community, Our Vision’, the Malaysian vision as chairman of Asean since Jan 1 is to create a people-focused Asean involving all sectors of the community. — Bernama