Attorney-general Mohamed Apandi Ali has remained tightlipped on the issues concerning North Korea, citing Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak's instruction.

“We fear if many people (are) talking, we will jeopardise the negotiations because the matter is very sensitive.

“So sorry. I cannot say anything much. Only the prime minister can say and comment,” he told reporters on the sidelines of the Asean Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights' (AICHR) judicial colloquium in Kuala Lumpur this morning.

Pressed further on the matter, Apandi reiterated the sensitive nature of the issue.

“The prime minister’s instructions are that only he or the deputy prime minister can comment to the press," he said.

Earlier, Apandi refused to respond to questions and stated that he was not in the know when asked to confirm whether Japan and South Korea had extended their cooperation in the investigations into the murder of Kim Jong-nam, the estranged half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.

“I don’t know, I really don’t know,” he added when asked whether Japan had provided the fingerprints of Jong-nam for identification purposes.

Talks on release of Malaysians still on

Asked about the talks to secure the release of Malaysians in North Korea, Apandi said the negotiations were still going on.

“The good thing is that the negotiations are still going on (but) I don’t know the details of the negotiations.

“Whatever it is, both parties agreed to negotiate,” said Apandi, who also confirmed that the negotiations would go according to the “prime minister’s way”.

Asked about the possible outcome of the trial involving the two suspects charged with murdering Jong-nam, Apandi said: “We wait the court’s decision on this.

“I cannot prejudge a decision. The case will go on, with whatever witnesses we have.

“But it will take some time, I don’t know when it will end,” he added.

The tense bilateral ties between Malaysia and North Korea came about after the murder of Jong-nam at the KL International Airport 2 (KLIA2) on Feb 13, just before he was to depart on a flight to Macau.

Jong-nam had entered the country using a passport bearing the name of Kim Chol and was attacked by two women suspects who swiped his face with their hands containing a chemical substance, which was later identified as VX nerve agent. He died while on the way to Putrajaya Hospital.

After the expulsion of the North Korean ambassador to Malaysia, Pyongyang last week barred all 11 Malaysians based at the country’s embassy in Pyongyang from leaving the republic.

Subsequently, two of them, who are with a United Nations agency, were allowed to leave.