KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia views 2026 as a critical year that will challenge long-standing assumptions about global power, order and responsibility, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim says.
Speaking at a public lecture titled "Power Shift: Strategic Choices For Malaysia And Türki̇ye" in Ankara on Wednesday (Jan 7), Anwar said the year ahead would be marked by significant uncertainty and strategic change at the global level.
"This will test many settled assumptions about power, order and responsibility," he said, adding that his visit to Türkiye would be among the most consequential visits in 2026.
Anwar stressed that countries positioned as middle powers could not afford to remain passive as global certainty continues to erode, nor wait for others to set the terms.
He said when diplomacy comes under strain, states have an obligation to sustain it and to uphold international norms even when they are challenged.
"When diplomacy is under pressure, we have a responsibility to keep it functioning. When international law is bent or ignored, we must insist it still matters," he said.
Anwar, who is also the Finance Minister, emphasised that cooperation among countries like Malaysia was not about confrontation or bloc politics aimed at any particular country, but about navigating an increasingly complex and contested international environment.
He added that while such actions may not resolve every global dispute, they remain essential for preserving strategic space for smaller and middle-sized nations, and cautioned that rising uncertainty has raised the cost of miscalculation, making disengagement a risky option.
"The actions that countries like ours take will not resolve every contest. But they will help determine whether smaller countries retain room to manoeuvre, and whether law still constrains power," he said.
Anwar is in Türki̇ye on a three-day official visit at the invitation of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to further strengthen the longstanding bilateral ties between the two countries. - Bernama
