Malaysia adds Russia to its deck of geopolitical cards

 

From Julia Roknifard

The announcement by Malaysia’s prime minister on the country’s application to join the BRICS intergovernmental organisation signals yet another move in its hedging strategy through which it seeks to take a non-aligned path while benefiting from diversified international relationships with major powers.

Malaysia has sent a letter of application to join the (BRICS) organisation to Russia as the BRICS chairman, besides expressing openness to participate as a member country or strategic partner,

 Anwar Ibrahim said following a meeting with Russia’s foreign minister Sergei Lavrov who was in the country on a two-day working visit.

Lavrov for his part said that Russia welcomes Malaysia’s interest in BRICS: 

We actively support this interest and, as the chair, will help promote this interest,

 he told Russian media following his discussions with Anwar and his Malaysian counterpart Mohamad Hasan.

Malaysia, along with other smaller nations, has long refined the art of finding a sweet spot in great power rivalry, having played to the Western tune during the long decades of the Cold War when it faced a homegrown communist insurgency, hosting British and Commonwealth forces in pursuit of its own security and economic interests.

With the rise of China as an economic superpower, the country began a pivot towards the Asian giant as it sought to take advantage of the economic and industrial opportunities, becoming an early participant of the Belt and Road Initiative.

Going beyond economic interests, this foreign policy approach has allowed Malaysia to take a stand on issues that are of interest to its domestic population such as Malaysia’s longstanding support of the Palestinian people and criticism of Israel.

Fending off the US

While the US recently made moves that could be seen as retaliation over Malaysia’s stand on Palestine such as criticising its alleged role in the smuggling of sanctioned Iranian and Russian oil and supplying components to Russia, pursuing membership in BRICS will allow Malaysia to strengthen its hand.

As has been seen, sanctions against Russia have had a limited short-term effect with the country being able to continue trading with its BRICS partners and other countries that do not toe the Western line. In fact home minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail defiantly said Malaysia will not recognise unilateral sanctions, something that would have been unthinkable even a decade ago.

Malaysia has indeed been charting its own course with even Lavrov thanking Malaysia for its non-confrontational stance on the conflict in Ukraine. He reciprocated and spoke with understanding of Malaysia’s support for the Palestinian cause and named fulfilling the UN resolutions on the two-state solution as the most viable way towards putting an end to the ongoing massacre in Gaza.

Give-and-take approach

This give and take approach is refreshing after years of the dictates of western powers imposing their own machinations.

He applied the same logic to the other contentious international issues like the South China Sea where, in his mind, littoral states are being encouraged by the US to take a confrontational stance towards China instead of resorting to a well-measured diplomatic approach.

Malaysia can be seen as seeking to exploit the same geopolitical developments as other countries facing pressure from the west, particularly the US, into taking positions that do not jive with their own aspirations and interests.

After all, even if Malaysia faces an all-out sanctions regime from the west it will still have access to Russia, and its massive natural resources and commodities, China, which is the dominant manufacturing and economic power, and India, with its massive consumer base.

This hedging makes it harder for Malaysia to be cornered.

BRICS began with Brazil, Russia, India, China and later included South Africa. It has since been expanded to include Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia, and the United Arab Emirates as members.

Freeze on membership

While there are benefits for Malaysia’s bid in joining BRICS, the situation is not so straightforward. Unnoticed by many, the group announced a freeze on membership in June following its foreign ministers’ summit pending discussions on categories of partner countries as stages ahead of a full-fledged membership.

This might explain Lavrov’s cautious wording on what Malaysia is seeking – 

strengthening ties with BRICS

 – without touching on the application.

This could also mean that Malaysia will face an extended waiting time to get into the grouping, blunting efforts to leverage the threat of joining BRICS as a means of countering Western pressure.

There is also the issue of foreign investment in Malaysia, with the US being the single largest source of investment. In 2022, US private sector investment accounted for RM37.8 billion, creating more than 10,000 jobs.

US economic clout

The US also maintains an outsized presence in the Malaysian economy with controversial investment firm BlackRock alone owning assets worth approximately RM27.5 billion in Malaysia, according to investment, trade and industry minister Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz.

The firm is also in the process of acquiring a stake in Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd, a move which has sparked intense debate among Malaysians.

It remains to be seen if any BRICS member, whether individually or collectively, will be able to match this level of financial input into Malaysia’s economy; a miscalculation could lead to major economic challenges.

But then perhaps it is Malaysia’s presence in BRICS that will add value to the bloc even as it positions itself to make use of the platform for political rather than economic benefits.

These moves by Malaysia demonstrate an independent and pragmatic approach towards foreign policy that other non-aligned countries might learn from. Its relationship with major power countries, along with its well-developed semiconductor sector, commodities and role as a regional business, logistics and finance hub, give it effective cards to play in ongoing geopolitical shifts. - FMT

Julia Roknifard is an assistant professor at University of Nottingham Malaysia and a consultant with a Moscow-based think tank.

The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of MMKtT.