Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad and his deputy, Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, had agreed that Malaysia will not protest against the United States ruling requiring first-time applicants of non immigrant visas, including Malaysians, to appear before its consular officer at its embassy.

"No protest. We will not protest...as long as they don't bother us," Mahathir was quoted by Bernama as saying in Port Dickson today where he attended a social gathering of the Prime Minister's Department.

Commenting on the new ruling effective Aug 1, which was announced by Senior Adviser for Strategic Planning of the Visa Services Directorate at the State Department Stephen A. Edson, the prime minister said if the US was suspicious of Malaysians, there was nothing Malaysia could do about it.

Edson's announcement also stated that being granted a visa did not guarantee entry into the United States.

Plan early advice

Yesterday, Abdullah also advised Malaysians to adhere strictly to the new procedures outlined by the US to obtain visas for travel to the country.

He said that Malaysians should plan well in advance if they needed to go to the US since the new ruling would mean longer processing time for visas.

However, the deputy premier added that he did not understand why the US was introducing the new ruling.