Harnessing potential of Malaysia-China relations for prosperous future

KUALA LUMPUR, April 14 – Malaysia and China must continue to leverage on their respective advantages and mutual support as they pursue closer relations amidst challenges in the evolving regional and global landscape. 

While the first 50 years had stood witness to the many successes made by the two countries bilaterally, the future trajectory of Kuala Lumpur-Beijing relations hinge on continued engagement and efforts to promote sustainable development and prosperity for both nations.

Deputy Dean of China-ASEAN Research Institute at the Guangxi University China, Assoc. Prof Luo Chuanyu, said Malaysia and China cannot be satisfied with the achievements made in their traditional cooperation as collaborations in new and emerging sectors should be intensified to propel prospects of this strategic partnerships ahead.

“Chinese President Xi Jinping attaches great importance to China-Malaysia relations and has met with Malaysian leaders many times over the past years.

“After Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim took office, he emphasised that cooperation with China is the priority of his government,” he said in an interview in conjunction with the 50th anniversary of Malaysia-China bilateral relations this year.

He noted that Anwar, in reaffirming Malaysia’s support for China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and commitment to further promote trade cooperation with China in building a more stable and resilient industrial and supply chain, has sent a positive signal to Beijing on the future of the relationship.

He was optimistic that by leveraging their respective strengths in the multifaceted relations, and exploring new opportunities for collaboration, the two countries can further deepen their partnership and play a pivotal role in fostering regional stability and prosperity.

The economic field has been the highlight of Malaysia-China bilateral cooperation. In 2023, total trade volume reached RM450.84 billion (US.80 billion), making China Malaysia’s largest trading partner for the 15th consecutive year.

As of February 2024, total trade volume between the two nations has reached an impressive US.52 billion.

Hence, Luo said Malaysia and China should aim to further maximise their potential of economic and trade cooperation, including by fully utilising the bilateral and multilateral trade platforms such as the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).

“On the one hand, the dividends from regional free trade agreements need to be used. Recently, RCEP and CPTPP have come into effect in Malaysia, providing more support for Malaysia’s export-oriented economic development,” he said.

He said both sides also must focus on innovation in specific fields, particularly in digital infrastructure development and digital economy to enhance the depth and breadth of collaboration.

“While the traditional areas, such as trade, investment, tourism, and infrastructure, still share the major proportion, the digital, sustainable, and biology will become hot spots in the coming years,” he said. 

Citing the East Coast Railway Line (ECRL), Luo said the project is an example of a successful cooperation experience for the two countries and such collaborations should be continued moving forward. 

“At the same time, with the help of a solid foundation for transportation infrastructure construction, building e-commerce basements along the ECRL could be taken advantage of in the future, which could facilitate online shopping by providing a convenient way for shoppers; then the connection between the physical stores and online trailers will become more tightly,” he said.

He said besides laying the crucial physical infrastructure, both sides also could focus on constructing internet infrastructure and supporting facilities, and accelerating the efficiency of logistics systems.

He also underscored the needs for both countries to also develop big data technologies to increase international trade, as well as to promote high quality development and investments.