Malaysia PM Mahathir's old rival Anwar promises to support him

Putrajaya (Malaysia): Malaysia's prime minister-in-waiting Anwar Ibrahim said Friday that it's time for him to return as a lawmaker, but reiterated his full support for the government led by his former foe-turned-ally Mahathir Mohamad.

Anwar and Mahathir put aside their 20-year-old political feud to help their alliance win a historic national vote in May that led to the first change of power since independence from Britain in 1957.

Anwar, who was convicted in 2015 for sodomy, couldn't take part in the elections but their four-party alliance had agreed that Mahathir would be prime minister and hand over the reins to Anwar.

"The understanding ... is that immediately after the pardon, I should enter the race," Anwar told The Associated Press on Friday.

"I waited four months and I think it is also important for me to start connecting" with lawmakers and focus on parliamentary reforms.