KUALA LUMPUR: The time-tested relations between Malaysia and China will come under the spotlight when Foreign Minister Wang Yi arrives on Monday.
China’s top diplomat is expected to build on ties bolstered by a steady rise in trade between the two countries even during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The minister’s five-nation, 12-day diplomatic swing of the region has taken him to Myanmar, Thailand, the Philippines and Indonesia in a show of Beijing’s commitment to the region.
As he seeks to explain China’s stance on a host of international issues here, Wang Yi is also expected to make a pitch for President Xi Jinping’s Global Development Initiative, which emphasises poverty alleviation, food security, Covid-19 and vaccines, financing for development, climate change and green development, industrialisation, the digital economy and connectivity.
Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Abdullah said his Chinese counterpart’s visit here was a testament to the strong ties between Malaysia and China cultivated over almost half a century.
“We have made remarkable progress in bilateral relations since the establishment of diplomatic ties in 1974, bringing tangible benefits to both our countries and its people and making positive contributions to promoting peace, stability and prosperity of the region,” he told The Star.
Saifuddin and Wang Yi will have an opportunity to follow up after having co-chaired the inaugural China-Malaysia High Level Committee Meeting in Anji County, Zhejiang province, in December last year, with both sides focusing on “win-win cooperation” in promoting their comprehensive strategic partnership.
Both countries also agreed to build a more solid platform in the post-pandemic era and reach a broad consensus on key cooperation priorities for the next stage.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob was among the leaders who joined the Asean-China Special Summit to Commemorate the 30th Anniversary of Asean-China Dialogue Relations chaired by Xi via video-conference last November.
China watchers here said they expected Wang Yi’s visit to act as a “booster shot” to Malaysia’s economic recovery efforts.
Malaysia-China Chamber of Commerce immediate past president Datuk Tan Yew Sing said he was looking forward to “soothing” news on the economic front.
“China has remained Malaysia’s biggest trading partner for 13 consecutive years and even during the harsh peak of Covid-19, our bilateral trade grew.
“Of special interest will be China’s expertise in high-tech, such as in hybrid vehicle technology and in ecommerce. Being a world leader in it, China may want to make Malaysia its regional hub,” he added.
Former Malaysian ambassador to China Datuk Iskandar Sarudin said he was confident of a positive outcome from Wang Yi’s visit.
“In two years, Malaysia and China will mark 50 years of diplomatic relations. I was in Beijing when we celebrated our 40th year which was a major event, as milestones are important to the Chinese.“The Foreign Minister’s visit will be timely as we head to yet another remarkable chapter in our history,” added the former diplomat who served as envoy to China from 2010 to 2015.
Iskandar, who now heads the One Belt One Road Association of Malaysia that provides advice and network links for Malaysian industries to identify and establish business opportunities with Chinese enterprises through the Belt and Road Initiative, said Malaysia was keenly anticipating the opening of China’s international borders to enable a full recovery of the tourism industry.
“We need to have Chinese tourists come to Malaysia again. In the past, we also used to attract loads of Chinese students,” he added.
Since Covid-19 was first detected in 2019, China has remained closed for tourism. At present, only citizens and foreign nationals with valid residence permits and some special types of visas are allowed to enter.
Despite the challenges posed by the pandemic, trade between China and Malaysia grew 5.7% to US$131.16bil (RM579.72bil) last year.
Malaysia-China bilateral trade volume reached US$176.8bil (RM781.45bil) last year, a 34.5% increase compared with 2020.
As for the first four months of 2022, the increase is 19.7%, amounting to US$61.57bil (RM272.14bil).
China’s investments in Malaysia increased by nearly US$1bil (RM4.42bil) with a growth rate of 22.6%, with the country being the largest foreign investment source of Malaysia’s manufacturing industry for four consecutive years.
Malaysia remains the second largest trading partner of China among Asean countries.
