00:00We meet today in the midst of a war foisted on a sovereign state of Iran and its people,
00:08driven by the hegemonic ambitions of Israel in West Asia,
00:14and principally aided and abetted by the formidable war machine of the United States of America.
00:23Targeted killings of spiritual, political, military leaders are executed with surgical precision,
00:31while missile attacks massacre schoolchildren as they go about their lessons.
00:39As the statistics of the dead continue to pile up, not just in Iran, but elsewhere,
00:45as in the Gaza and Lebanon, cities of rich historical heritage are indiscriminately bombed,
00:54while key water and energy installations are blown out of existence.
01:00Inasmuch as history reminds us that instability in this region rarely remains confined within its borders,
01:09The escalation of this war has already sparked massive disruptions in global energy markets.
01:18I just presided an emergency meeting of the Economic Advising Council,
01:24and we of course had to deliberate some key issues,
01:30because the war has its ramifications throughout the world and affecting us here in Malaysia.
01:39If international law is to retain credibility, it must apply equally to all.
01:47Principles lose their authority when they are invoked selectively.
01:53These inconstitances undermine confidence in the very foundations of the international system.
02:01Ladies and gentlemen, after the First World War,
02:04John Maynard Keynes published The Economic Consequences of the Peace.
02:11I think Professor Sachs has learned it by heart.
02:17Purportedly advocating for the economic well-being of the world.
02:21Today, staring us in the face are the economic consequences of the war
02:28that extend far beyond the killing fields.
02:31War disrupts production, damages infrastructure,
02:36diverts national resources towards military expenditure rather than development.
02:43These pressures translate into higher energy prices,
02:48rising inflation, greater fiscal restraint,
02:51and ultimately hardship, misery for the majority of our people.
02:58At a time when the world faces interconnected challenges,
03:03voices such as yours, Professor Sachs,
03:06remind us that many of the problems confronting humanity
03:10cannot be addressed by nations acting alone.
03:15They require cooperation, imagination, and sustained commitment.
03:21The endurance of the international order will ultimately depend not only on institutions or agreements,
03:28but on whether nations remain willing to uphold the principles that give those structures meaning.
03:37The bard reminds us that the evil that men do lives after them,
03:45the good is often interred in the bones.
03:48Let us not suffer the same fate.
03:51I earnestly believe that if the international community is to rebuild trust in the global system,
03:59it must demonstrate that the protection of human dignity is not conditional
04:06and that justice is not a bargaining chip to be parlayed for strategic gain.
04:15I look forward to a thoughtful and enriching exchange with Professor Jeffrey Sachs with all of you.
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