KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia is intensifying its pursuit of new markets through expanded trade and investment partnerships as part of its commitment to multilateralism.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim revealed that Malaysia’s engagement with the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation following China’s invitation has already produced positive outcomes.
“We have seen the effectiveness, and we look forward to further collaborating with the SCO, but you see the whole strategy now, even from Malaysia, and I encourage my colleagues in ASEAN to open up trade and investment relations and broaden the market base,“ he stated during an interview with China’s CGTN.
Anwar emphasized the importance of establishing new economic mechanisms beyond existing frameworks like ASEAN and ASEAN+ arrangements.
“We have ASEAN, and we have ASEAN+, that is with China, Korea, Japan and all the other countries. But it’s more important to have new mechanisms, new engagements such as the SCO, BRICS,“ he explained.
The Prime Minister highlighted the significance of the upcoming ASEAN Summit in October, which will feature participation from leaders of Brazil, South Africa, Italy and Canada.
He reaffirmed Malaysia’s commitment to discussing the extension of the East Coast Rail Link project by 25 kilometres to connect with Thailand’s border.
“We don’t stop in the north, but also to extend to the border of Thailand, hopefully with the new Thai government or the existing one – they are in the midst of change – we will discuss the possibility of extending it,“ Anwar said.
Regarding automotive development, Anwar noted Malaysia’s strategic position to benefit from China’s electric vehicle success through Proton’s partnership with Geely.
He disclosed ongoing discussions with Geely chairman Li Shufu to strengthen cooperation with government support from both nations.
“We will launch Geely’s major expansion into the automotive city, and Geely would initially have this hybrid and then EV production,“ he added. – Bernama
