Asean should engage all major powers despite differences, says Anwar

Free Malaysia Today

Prime minister acknowledges differences among Asean member states, but says these should not derail cooperation.  Read More: https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2026/06/10/asean-should-engage-all-major-powers-despite-differences-says-anwar  Free Malaysia Today is an independent, bi-lingual news portal with a focus on Malaysian current affairs.    Subscribe to our channel - http://bit.ly/2Qo08ry   ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Check us out at https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com Follow FMT on Facebook: https://bit.ly/49JJoo5 Follow FMT on Dailymotion: https://bit.ly/2WGITHM Follow FMT on X: https://bit.ly/48zARSW  Follow FMT on Instagram: https://bit.ly/48Cq76h Follow FMT on TikTok : https://bit.ly/3uKuQFp Follow FMT Berita on TikTok: https://bit.ly/48vpnQG  Follow FMT Telegram - https://bit.ly/42VyzMX Follow FMT LinkedIn - https://bit.ly/42YytEb Follow FMT Lifestyle on Instagram: https://bit.ly/42WrsUj Follow FMT on WhatsApp: https://bit.ly/49GMbxW  ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Download FMT News App: Google Play – http://bit.ly/2YSuV46 App Store – https://apple.co/2HNH7gZ Huawei AppGallery - https://bit.ly/2D2OpNP  #FMTNews

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00:00For a country, and I think for the region, we have to engage.

00:06And all of us agree on that point, that we should continue to engage other regions.

00:12That's why we have ASEAN, of course, Japan, ASEAN, United States, ASEAN, China, and next week, ASEAN, Russia.

00:23Oh, my dear.

00:24There's more contentious, more difficult.

00:26But we're still proceeding.

00:29Why? Because ASEAN position is centrality.

00:32Do we agree with all the issues or decisions by President Trump?

00:36Of course not.

00:37Or with Russia, certainly we have differences.

00:40But we collaborate well.

00:43Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said today that ASEAN should continue engaging all major powers,

00:48including Japan, the US, China, and Russia, even when it disagrees with them on key international issues.

00:54Speaking at the 31st Nikkei Forum, Anwar said the bloc's strength lay in its ability to maintain dialogue and cooperation

01:02with all sides,

01:03rather than being drawn into positions shaped by major power rivalry.

01:08The Prime Minister also rejected suggestions that Malaysia's warm ties with any particular leader or country should be interpreted as

01:15taking sides.

01:16How we received President Donald Trump in Malaysia, for example, and also President Xi Jinping.

01:24Of course, they say, but with Trump, I danced a bit.

01:27With Xi Jinping, I didn't.

01:29It doesn't make a difference because President Xi Jinping said, I'm sorry, Anwar, I don't dance.

01:34That's all.

01:34Otherwise, I would have done the same.

01:36On Malaysia's interest in BRICS, Anwar said engagement with the grouping should be seen as part of a broader diversification

01:43strategy,

01:44not a shift away from existing partners.

01:46Earlier to the issue of BRICS, why BRICS?

01:50I said, I'm asking why not?

01:52We are with all countries, we are with APEC.

01:56Why not APEC?

01:57Look at APEC, exclude some countries.

02:01But we are with APEC, and we have arrangements bilaterally, multilaterally with many countries.

02:11Andrea Edmonds, Tokyo, Japan, FMT.

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