ASEAN must align trade and diplomacy to weather geopolitical rivalry, says PM
PRIME Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim warned that trade is now being used as a tool in global power struggles and urged ASEAN to better coordinate its economic and foreign policies in response.
'Tariffs, export restrictions, and investment barriers have now become the sharpened instruments of geopolitical rivalry. This is no passing storm. It is the new weather of our time,' he said in his speech at the 58th ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Meeting.
Anwar urged ASEAN to face this new reality with 'clarity and conviction', and to strengthen its internal cohesion beyond declarations by integrating those priorities into institutions, strategies and decisions.
He called for a deliberate shift toward greater synergy between economic and diplomatic agendas, stating that ASEAN's Foreign and Economic Ministers must 'move in concert' to tackle rising external pressures.
'This imperative is fully aligned with ASEAN's Vision 2045, which calls for greater synergy across pillars and sectors,' he added.
He further highlighted the need for greater regional economic self-reliance, describing a stronger and more connected ASEAN economy as essential for ensuring the bloc's long-term relevance and resilience.
Nevertheless, Anwar made clear that ASEAN must reject the idea of great powers deciding the region's fate on its behalf, asserting that Southeast Asia must chart its own course.
'ASEAN will not be spoken for in absentia,' he said.
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