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Despite the election setback for the Barisan Nasional coalition, which puts a question mark over the future of Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, Mr Abdullah still remains a viable partner of the United States. -- PHOTO: AFP
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WASHINGTON - WASHINGTON stands ready to keep up close cooperation with the current government of Malaysia, a US State Department spokesman said on Sunday, despite a stunning election defeat for the country's ruling party.
The election setback on Saturday for the Barisan Nasional coalition, which has ruled Malaysia for half a century, put a question mark over the future of Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.
State Department spokesman Kurtis Cooper said Mr Abdullah remains a viable partner for the United States.
'We have seen the preliminary election results and we look forward to working closely with Prime Minister Abdullah's government on a wide range of issues of mutual interest,' Mr Cooper said on Sunday.
The election was a major victory for opposition leader and former deputy premier Anwar Ibrahim, who has made a spectacular political comeback since his 1998 sacking and imprisonment.
Mr Abdullah has said his coalition could still form the next government, but conceded that Saturday's election could be a vote of no-confidence in his leadership, which has been criticised as weak and ineffectual.
The defeat was the worst ever for Malaysia's government, which lost its two-thirds majority and four states to buoyant opposition. -- AFP
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