Malaysia denies WikiLeaks expose on two firms
By IANSSaturday, December 4, 2010
KUALA LUMPUR - The Malaysian government has cleared its two firms of any wrongdoing and denied the recent expose by whistleblower WikiLeaks which said the companies were involved with Iran in procuring missile technology from China.
“We have been monitoring these two companies since 2008 and from our observations, they are of no threat to national security,” Malaysian Home Minister Hishammuddin Tun Hussein said Friday.
Rejecting WikiLeaks’ claim, Hishammuddin said it was more “surprising” the speculation that the Malaysian government was “not doing more to stop the two firms”, The Star newspaper reported.
“If they (international agencies) have any doubts or new information, why not just ask us instead of communicating and speculating among themselves?” he asked, adding that the ministry was in contact with the FBI, CIA and other intelligence agencies.
Hishammuddin also said his ministry has spoken to the directors of the two companies, who have assured full cooperation.
“If they are identified as a threat, they will not be here any more. What’s most important is that they are under our radar and we can safely say there is no relation to any terrorism-related activities,” he said.
The ministry is working closely with the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC), defence ministry and the foreign ministry on the case, he added.
According to a secret diplomatic cable leaked by WikiLeaks, the US embassy in Beijing asked the Chinese government to investigate and block any attempt to procure TRS-500 gyroscopes from Chinese firm VibTel Industrial CoInc.
The TRS-500 gyroscopes (instruments to measure and maintain the orientation and stabilisation of flying vehicles) were sought by the Malaysian-based Electronics Component Limited (ECL).
The leaked documents also claimed that ECL, along with another Malaysian company Skylife Worldwide Sdn Bhd, had been linked to a network of Iranian-controlled front companies that procure sensitive goods for Iranian entities.
