Friday 26 October 2018

Anwar extends a hand of friendship to China

Malaysia’s heir apparent pushes cordial ties with Beijing amid differences over mega-projects and Uighur asylum-seekers


Fresh from a landslide by-election victory earlier this month that cemented his position as a ruling coalition lawmaker, veteran politician Anwar Ibrahim has stepped back into frontline politics and onto the world stage. The 71-year-old reform icon recently wrapped up a closely-watched three-day visit to China.

His trip comes amid speculation from certain quarters that Beijing has grown displeased over bilateral differences with Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad’s administration, which has undertaken a strategic recalibration of ties with the world’s second-largest economy since clinching a surprise victory in May’s general election.

US$23 billion worth of Chinese-backed projects, including a coast-to-coast rail link and two gas pipelines, have since been cancelled or deferred by the Malaysian government, which accuses former premier Najib Razak’s scandal-and-corruption-besieged administration of unscrupulous borrowing to fund those projects.

Malaysia allowed 11 ethnic Uighur Muslim detainees, natives of China’s western Xinjiang province, to travel to Turkey in a bid to seek asylum earlier this month, defying a months-old request from Beijing for their repatriation on security grounds. China’s Foreign Ministry reacted in strong terms, saying it “resolutely” opposed the move.

Read the full story at 
Asia Times.

Nile Bowie is a writer and journalist with the Asia Times covering current affairs in Singapore and Malaysia. He can be reached at nilebowie@gmail.com.