KUALA LUMPUR, May 31 — In solemn note to commemorate four decades of ties between Malaysia and China, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak told Asian superpower the hunt for Flight MH370 will not cease before the plane is located.
Speaking in Beijing on the 40th anniversary of diplomatic ties with China — formed coincidentally be his father, then prime minister Tun Abdul Razak Hussein — Najib also acknowledged the strain of the plane’s disappearance on the once-balmy relationship between the two countries.
“Like all friendships, ours is sometimes tested. Malaysia was deeply saddened by the tragic disappearance of Flight MH370, with 50 Malaysian passengers and crew and 154 Chinese passengers on board.
“Facing a mystery without precedent, we were grateful for the support of the Chinese government, which has spared no expense in the search effort. We will not rest until the plane is found,” he said in his speech delivered in the Chinese capital today.
The disappearance of the Beijing-bound Malaysia Airlines flight on March 8 had briefly soured ties between the two countries after China grew dissatisfied with the search for the plane carrying 153 of its nationals.
Beijing’s displeasure initially manifested in the form of tacit approval for public protests and scathing opinion pieces in Chinese state media, but it was the delay in sending over two giant pandas to Malaysia that led to speculation of strained ties.
In 2012, Malaysia made a significant breakthrough in its diplomatic ties with China when Beijing announced that it would place two giant pandas to commemorate the 40th anniversary of official relations.
The pandas are part of the so-called “Panda Diplomacy” practised by China in which it sends the creatures to friendly nations as a diplomatic gift. The custom traces back to the Tang Dynasty in the seventh century.
The pair of Chinese pandas, Feng Yi and Fu Wa, arrived last week.
Today, Najib said the adversity of MH370 would strengthen the bonds between the two countries.
“I believe that, with time, we will grow even closer together. Good relations are easy when times are good; but true friendship is forged in difficulty. In his speech four decades ago, my father stressed that ‘this goodwill that exists between us must be carefully nurtured’.”
Nearly three months after its disappearance, the search for MH370 has failed to turn up any clues of the plane’s location.
A previous search that was concentrated off the west coast of Australia has now been suspended after searchers conceded that earlier signs of the plane’s possible location were unrelated to MH370.
