New government an opportunity for Malaysia to look beyond China and Asean

SINGAPORE/KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 28: As Malaysians welcome a new government led by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, all eyes are on how he will balance the need to maintain relations with China and also its neighbours against the sovereign interests of the South-East Asian nation.

Malaysia has for decades been seen to be Western leaning but fully capable of charting an independent course that has seen it build robust economic and diplomatic ties with China, but this has gradually morphed into Malaysia being increasingly seen as becoming a satellite state of the rising Asian superpower.