FOREIGN LEADERS' VISITS DEMONSTRATE SUPPORT FOR MALAYSIA'S ASEAN CHAIRMANSHIP, SAY ANALYSTS

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 11 (Bernama) -- The official visits of Singapore Prime Minister Lawrence Wong and Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto to Malaysia as the country takes over the ASEAN chairmanship carry a deep symbolism and meaning in terms of support, said Universiti Malaya International and Strategic Studies Department head Associate Professor Dr Khoo Ying Hooi.

She said Malaysia has a huge opportunity this year to make a breakthrough to show a more assertive and different ASEAN leadership.

"Every year, there are countries that become the chairman (of ASEAN). There are countries that are not so vocal and the regional political landscape will become more subdued. So, the focus will be on Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia and Thailand because to become the chairman requires a very high capacity," she said as a panellist on BernamaTV’s Ruang Bicara’s “Mendepani 2025” segment on Friday night.

Apart from the visits of leaders of ASEAN member states, Malaysia also received a visit from Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba this week.

According to Khoo, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's announcement of former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra’s appointment as an advisory member of ASEAN is a strategy and approach that is innovative and has never been done by any ASEAN chairman before.

The big test for Anwar and the advisory team is whether they will lead ASEAN to a progressive and different achievement, she said.

Meanwhile, another panellist, Putra Business School’s Master of Business Administration Programme director Associate Professor Dr Ahmed Razman Abdul Latiff, said Malaysia should take the opportunity to further strengthen ASEAN finances during its chairmanship to ensure that there is no financial crisis.

According to Ahmed Razman, Malaysia must ensure that trust between all ASEAN member states is enhanced so that there is no suspicion and everyone understands that the objective is for mutual prosperity.

In business, trust can enhance and strengthen objectives in achieving a common development, he said.

Ahmed Razman said of the initiatives that Malaysia could introduce was to promote the use of renewable energy.

Renewable energy is an issue that must be addressed because it involves the economic potential of a country and this is an opportunity to ensure sustainability in terms of energy production, he said.

ASEAN consists of 10 member countries, namely Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

This year, Malaysia became the chairman of ASEAN for the fifth time after 1977, 1997, 2005 and 2015.

-- BERNAMA

RMI VMP MJM