Steadfastly holding on to his stance that he condemns both terrorism and racism, Defence Minister Hishammuddin Hussein insisted that his remarks have been taken out of context.

"I am not naive as to link the Islamic State (IS) with the price of items and the issue regarding Ismail Sabri (Yaakob).

"I have been, and am very consistent, in condemning both acts of terrorism and racism," said Hishammuddin during a press conference at the Defence Ministry in Kuala Lumpur today.

He asserted that his elaboration of youth radicalisation and challenges to national security during his keynote speech in a symposium last Saturday, was taken out of context.

In a report by an online portal two days ago, Hishammuddin ( right ) was quoted as saying that fellow Umno leader Ismail Sabri's racist Facebook rant against Chinese traders is not as bad when compared to the brutal killings by IS.

“If you want to talk about moderation, I think IS burning the Jordanian pilot is far worse than this case involving Ismail,” he added at a press conference last Saturday.

He was referring to the viral video where IS militants had caged a Jordanian pilot and burned him alive.

In the same speech, the defence minister also claimed that Ismail's Facebook posting has "helped raise consciousness among the public, irrespective of race, about the cost of goods and services".

'It doesn't make sense'

He pointed out today that those individuals who continue to play up the issue of linking IS and Ismail's statement have an agenda, and are merely trying to prolong the issue.

"It doesn't make sense to link IS with Ismail. The way it was taken out of context that day is not only cheeky, but holds a different agenda meant to blow it out of proportion.

"The fact that certain parties are still playing up this issue will only heat up inter-race relations," he noted.

Ismail - who is also the agriculture and agro-based industries minister - courted flak over his Facebook posting, which urged the Malays to boycott Chinese traders who were not reducing the price of goods.

However, his statement had not been taken lightly by fellow BN component leader MCA secretary-general Ong Ka Chuan ( left ), who has insisted on an apology from Ismail.

Meanwhile, Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said that if MCA is genuinely upset by Ismail's remarks, then MCA president Liow Tiong Lai's cheerful photo opportunity with Ismail - taken while waiting for the arrival of Indonesian president Joko Widodo - is certainly baffling.

Hishammuddin had been attending a ceremony to confer military honours to the chiefs of the Indonesian and Singaporean armed forces - General Dr Moeldoko and Lieutenant General Ng Chee Meng, respectively - at the Defence Ministry today.

According to Hishammuddin, the cooperation between 10 different Asean nations is important, especially when dealing with the troubles of IS.