Following Duterte’s pronouncements of cutting off ties with the United States and to strengthen a relationship with China and Russia, it seems like other Southeast Asian countries is going after the President’s footsteps as Malaysia also expressed its desire to strengthen its ties with China.
Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak addressed the West saying that former colonial powers shouldn’t lecture other countries especially those they exploited in the past. He has a 6-day visit in China following President Duterte’s 4-day visit.
“And this includes former colonial powers. It is not for them to lecture countries they once exploited on how to conduct their own internal affairs today,”he said.
It can be recalled that Malaysia has been colonized by the British before, just as the Philippines had been a former Spanish and US colony.
Najib also belied the US Justice Department’s lawsuits against him due to a money-laundering scandal. This had been straining ties between the two countries as Najib believes that the US is interfering in Malaysia’s affairs. However, he stated that he is willing to cooperate in the investigation.
He also stated that the dispute in the South China Sea should be resolved by observing the rule of law. “When it comes to the South China Sea, we firmly believe that overlapping territorial and maritime disputes should be managed calmly and rationally through dialogue, in accordance with the rule of law and peaceful negotiations,”he said.
Meanwhile, as a result of the visit and after the meeting between Chine Premier Li Keqiang and Najib last Tuesday, they are to buy 4 Chinese naval vessels and have signed 14 agreements amounting to 143.64 billion ringgit ($ 34.25 billion).
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