Kuala Lumpur: President Barack Obama has cancelled his first visit to Malaysia next week due to the current US government shutdown, Malaysia’s Prime Minister Najib Razak said on Wednesday.
“Obama called this morning and informed me that he has to cancel his visit to Malaysia due to events transpiring in the United States, which has caused a partial shutdown of the government,” Najib said.
Najib said US Secretary of State John Kerry and Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker will be coming to Malaysia next week to represent Obama at the 4th Global Entrepreneurs Summit on October 11, state-run news agency Bernama reported. “Yet, Obama has expressed his intention to visit Malaysia at a date to be determined later,” Najib added.
The White House has not yet announced any changes to Obama’s travel plans. White House spokesman Jay Carney yesterday indicated Obama remained intent on pressing ahead with the summit appearances.
“He does believe that it is part of his job as Commander-in-Chief and President to travel to Asia and elsewhere to help create more economic opportunity for the American people, and also to create more national security opportunity for the United States,” Carney told reporters.
The US president was also to attend back-to-back summits of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) bloc on the Indonesian island of Bali on October 7-8, and an East Asia summit in Brunei on October 9-10. “While Obama’s cancellation was unforeseen and unexpected, I empathise with him as I would do the same if I was in a similar situation,” Najib said. “Obama would be severely criticised if he were to go on with his Asian tour instead of remaining in the United States to resolve the crisis,” added Najib. A political deadlock in Washington over Obama’s healthcare plan, which is opposed by the Republicans, has led to the current crisis. “I informed him that I understand the domestic situation in the United States which does not allow him to make an official visit now and, even if he did visit Malaysia, it would be questioned by the American community,” Najib was quoted by the news agency as saying. The US Congress will decide on October 17 on whether to raise the USD 16.7 trillion debt ceiling or scramble to find the cash. Failure to agree on a rise in the US government’s borrowing authority would force the US to default on some payment obligations. “The most serious consequence will be on Oct 17 when they do not review the debt ceiling, that means it will have a serious consequence on the US economy. With a major slowdown and even worst, recession, that certainly will affect global growth and Malaysia as well. (PTI)