PUTRAJAYA, May 4 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim stressed that Malaysia adopts a balanced approach in economic diplomacy, prioritising national interests, including energy security.
He said trade negotiations with strategic partners such as Australia are conducted on a reciprocal basis, taking into account Malaysia’s need to import raw materials such as phosphate for fertiliser production, while exporting urea.
“We import phosphate, we export urea… that is why in my discussions with the Prime Minister of Australia, Anthony Albanese, who was here two weeks ago, he asked for urea and I said that is possible provided he supplies phosphate.
“He (Albanese) asked for oil, and I said if we have a surplus we can supply it, but if we do not, we cannot — despite claims out there asking how Anwar sold oil to the Philippines; when did we sell oil to the Philippines?” he said when addressing the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability’s monthly assembly here today.
As such, he called on all parties to provide accurate facts, as this is a matter of national security and should not be treated as a political issue.
Anwar said Malaysia will continue to strengthen economic cooperation with key trading partners, including China and the United States, despite differences in views on geopolitical issues.
“The United States remains Malaysia’s number one trading partner and investor. Do we agree with its foreign policy? No. Do we agree with its actions in attacking Iran? No. Do we agree with it allowing the killing of children and women in Gaza? No.
“So we continue to uphold the independence I refer to as Asean centrality. We speak up because we are an independent and sovereign nation,” he said.
At the same time, he stressed that Malaysia will not compromise on key national policies, including those related to Bumiputera interests, in any trade negotiations.
“We can trade, but we will not allow others to dictate our policies. If we dismantle or overhaul these policies, it could create domestic political tensions that we cannot control. So there are limits,” he said.
He also stressed the need to maintain a pragmatic approach in international relations to ensure foreign investment flows are not disrupted.
“If we confront everything, new investments will be affected,” he said.
In a related development, he said Malaysia still has strengths in high-value sectors such as electrical and electronics (E&E) and artificial intelligence (AI), which continue to attract global investors.
He added that multinational companies such as Intel and Amazon Web Services continue to expand their investments in the country.
“This means that while we face challenges in some areas, we are still benefiting from others,” he said. — Bernama
