Defence Minister Mohamad Sabu said there were, however, some Malaysians who wished to remain there as they felt it was safe for them.

Replying to questions in the Dewan Rakyat, he said Malaysia had no wish to play any part in the Middle East conflict.

On June 20, the government said it would review the stationing of Malaysian troops in Saudi Arabia.

Mohamad said then that the presence of the troops, who were sent there by the previous government, had caused the country to be indirectly involved in conflict in the region.

The former government had said that Malaysian troops were deployed in Saudi Arabia only to evacuate Malaysians from Yemen and for humanitarian purposes.

Replying to Reezal Merican Naina Merican (BN-Kepala Batas) who asked whether the withdrawal of the troops would weaken Malaysia’s solidarity with Saudi Arabia, which is leading a coalition in the Yemen conflict, Mohamad said: “They are at war, and we don’t want to be involved in the Middle East conflicts.

“I have also met the Saudi Arabian ambassador to discuss how we can strengthen bilateral ties.

“We agreed that should they want to conduct military training with our troops, they are most welcome to do so, but not for the purpose of sending our troops to war.”

To a question by Hassan Karim (PH-Pasir Gudang), Mohamad said the US and China were presently displaying their naval strengths in the South China Sea, which was “very worrying”.

He said Asean countries were in discussions to ensure the best outcome from this situation.

Mohamad also said if nuclear-powered ships wanted to pass through the Straits of Melaka, it could be discussed.

“But if they want to dock their nuclear-powered ships or launch demonstrations, we will not agree to that. This is because such acts would create conflict in the region,” he said.