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Asian Angle | Why Malaysia has stayed quiet but firm on South China Sea: ‘let sleeping dogs lie’
Anwar’s government has adhered to the three-pronged policy of maintaining China ties while still protecting Malaysia’s sovereign rights
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According to a recent spate of articles, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has recalibrated his country’s foreign policy, giving it a more pro-China and anti-Western slant.
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In particular, it has been suggested that Kuala Lumpur has moved closer to Beijing’s position on the South China Sea dispute in stating that the row should be resolved among claimant states without the involvement of external parties, and that this could cause problems for Asean unity when Malaysia takes over as chairman next year.
In reality, however, the Anwar government’s stance on the maritime dispute remains broadly consistent with that of its predecessors. And for good reason.
In the early 1990s, under prime minister Mahathir Mohamad, Kuala Lumpur adopted a three-pronged policy towards its overlapping claims with Beijing in the South China Sea.
First, Malaysia seeks to steadfastly assert and defend the country’s territorial claims and sovereign rights inside its exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
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