Malaysia's Prime Minister: ASEAN Does Not Take Sides
In his speech at the Shangri-La Dialogue security forum, Malaysia's Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim emphasized the core role of ASEAN in the regional security architecture and called for the establishment of an open, transparent, inclusive, and rule-based international system.
As the chair of ASEAN for 2025, Anwar stressed that ASEAN welcomes continued U.S. engagement in the region while also valuing its deep and stable relations with China, as well as its extensive and diverse partnerships with Asia, Europe, and the Global South. Despite conflicts around the world, poverty, division, the risk of arms races, and trade wars pose challenges to ASEAN, but the bloc will adhere to its principles of autonomy and multilateralism, uniting global forces to take action through close cooperation and forward-looking policies to maintain regional peace and stability.
Observers noted that not long ago, the first ASEAN-GCC-China Summit was held, highlighting ASEAN's willingness to align the capital of the GCC with China's economic scale, confirming the consensus among ASEAN summits to consolidate internal unity and cooperation while expanding strategic horizons externally.
Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/1833756095030284/
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