KUALA LUMPUR, March 21 — The Foreign Affairs Ministry is currently in negotiations with the Italian government to repatriate 82 Malaysians after the initial plan fell through.
Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister Datuk Kamarudin Jafar said the group of Malaysians registered with the Malaysian embassy in Rome, were supposed to arrive in Kuala Lumpur at 6.10am on Monday (March 23).
“Unfortunately, the embassy has informed us that the Italian Civil Aviation Authority has cancelled all flights landing approvals including for the special rental planes meant to bring Malaysians back from Italy,” he said during a joint press conference with Human Resources Minister Datuk Seri M. Saravanan today.
Kamarudin said the negotiations are ongoing, with the main objective of getting special authorisation to carry out the repatriations as quickly as possible, with any information on the situation to be updated by the ministry from time to time.
Meanwhile, Kamarudin also said 55 Malaysians will also be repatriated from Iran, of whom 46 are registered with the Malaysian embassy in Tehran.
“The special AirAsia flight carrying them is expected to land at 6.10am tomorrow, having left Iran at 11.45am today. It will also include 15 flight crew and eight government personnel, including five Health Ministry officials, two Foreign Affairs Ministry official, and one National Disaster Management Agency official.
“Following a video conference discussion between Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein with his Indonesian counterpart Ibu Retno Marsudi, and a phone conversation with his Singaporean counterpart Vivian Balakrishnan last Wednesday (March 11) Malaysia has agreed to assist by including eight Singaporeans and one Indonesia citizen in the flight back from Iran,” Kamarudin said.
He added that all those brought back to Malaysia from abroad will be quarantined for 14 days in a Public Training Institute where their health will be monitored and treatment administered if necessary, per the procedures set by the Health Ministry.
