KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said on Tuesday he would not retract his criticism of New Delhi’s actions in the disputed region of Kashmir even though Indian traders have urged a boycott of Malaysian palm oil.

The impasse could exacerbate what Mahathir described as a trade war between the world’s second biggest producer and exporter of the commodity and its biggest buyer so far this year.

India’s top vegetable oil trade body on Monday asked its members to stop buying Malaysian palm oil after Mahathir said at the UN General Assembly last month that India had “invaded and occupied” Kashmir.

“We speak our minds, and we don’t retract or change,” Mahathir told reporters outside parliament. “What we are saying is we should all abide by resolutions of the [United Nations]. Otherwise, what is the use of the UN?”

Mahathir said Malaysia would study the impact of the boycott called by the Mumbai-based Solvent Extractors Association of India and look at ways to address the issue.

“This is not the Indian government, so we have to find out how we can communicate with these people, because trade is a two-way thing and it is bad to have what amounts to a trade war,” Mahathir said.

In a separate statement, Malaysia’s Primary Industries Minister Teresa Kok said the country viewed the call for a boycott with “great concern”.

“I urge [the Solvent Extractors Association of India] to not take such decisions unilaterally and allow both governments to resolve the current situation,” Kok said.

Malaysia’s exports to India were worth $10.8 billion in the fiscal year through March 31, while imports totalled $6.4 billion, according to Indian government data.

India was Malaysia’s third-largest export destination in 2018 for palm oil and palm-based products worth 6.84 billion ringgit ($1.63 billion).

Malaysia said last week it was considering raising imports of raw sugar and buffalo meat from India, in a bid to ease the trade tensions.

Published in Dawn, October 23rd, 2019