Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has warned that developments in Iraq and the Middle East are threatening world security in letters to permanent UN Security Council members.

The letters, sent on April 14, were addressed to US President George W Bush, British Premier Tony Blair, French President Jacques Chirac, Russian President Vladimir Putin and China's President Hu Jintao.

Abdullah said that in its capacity as chairman of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) and the Organisation of the Islamic Conference, Malaysia hoped the violence in Iraq would not delay the handover of power in the war-torn country.

The prime minister said he was saddened by the continued suffering of the Iraqi people, adding that the country could not rebuild without peace.

"Malaysia wants all forms of violence to stop immediately and peace restored in Iraq," he was quoted as saying by Bernama news agency on Saturday.

Give UN central role

Abdullah said the time had come for the international community to seriously consider a central role for the United Nations role in Iraq.

The five permanent members of the UN Security Council should support such a move, he said.

In a separate letter on Friday to Bush, Blair, Putin and UN secretary-general Kofi Annan, Abdullah said Malaysia supported the establishment of an independent Palestinian state living side by side Israel.

But Abdullah expressed concern over Bush's support to Prime Minister Ariel Sharon for his plan to unilaterally pull out of the Gaza Strip.

The support may only encourage Israel to ignore the plight of the Palestinian people, he said. - AFP