In an interview with Global Times, former Prime Minister of Malaysia Mahathir Mohamad warned that the U.S. and Russian conflict is leading to world war. “The U.S. will try to get other countries to join in the action against Russia, and Russia will also have to find friendly countries which will support it,” Mahathir said. “There will be confrontation between the Eastern bloc and Western bloc. And this will escalate and become a world war.”
Blaming the actions of the West and NATO for the conflict in Ukraine, Mahathir said, “The invitation to Ukraine to join NATO is a provocation. In fact, if Ukraine doesn’t join NATO, I think Russia will feel less threatened, and there will be no confrontation. But once the process is started, Russia will take preemptive action.”
He also said that the standoff with Russia harms NATO member states greatly, while “In the end, they [Russia and Ukraine] will have to find some settlement. It is better for them to talk to each other, to discuss, to negotiate,” Mahathir said.
China has taken on a new role, Mahathir said, that of a peacemaker. “China is trying to solve the problems between Ukraine and Russia by urging them to make peace and to settle their problem,” he said. “This is a good role for China. Already, China has succeeded very well as a peacemaker. For example, the confrontation between Iran and Saudi Arabia has been going on for more than 40 years. But after China intervened, now there is no more confrontation between Saudi Arabia and Iran. So that is a great success for China. And China should continue. Then China will be recognized as a country that wants to see peace in the world and to promote trade and joint prosperity.
“The U.S. and NATO don’t want to see China play this role, but the fact is that the war is not going to solve their problem. They can keep on fighting and killing. And maybe Ukraine will be totally destroyed. And yet, there is no victory for either Russia or Ukraine. There will always be confrontation between them.” (https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202305/1290283.shtml)
