KUALA LUMPUR – Malaysia’s growing engagement with Russia should not be viewed as coming at the expense of ties with other countries, including the United States, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said.
Speaking at the end of his four-day official visit to Russia, Anwar said Malaysia, as an open trading nation, aims to expand its network of partnerships to safeguard its economic interests.
“It should not be seen as a matter of a zero-sum game. It should be complementary,” he said when asked whether closer ties with Moscow could affect relations with other nations, Bernama reported.
Anwar, who is also finance minister, met with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin and several business leaders during the visit, which included stops in Moscow and Kazan.
Reiterating Malaysia’s trade-first approach, he said: “Malaysia is a trading country. To protect our interests, we have to broaden and expand our market and trading partnerships.”
He added that while ties with Russia are being strengthened, Malaysia continues to value and welcome American investments.
“In fact, just last week, AMD (Advanced Micro Devices Inc) was there. There have been serious discussions to expand activities, and we certainly welcome that,” he said told reporters in Kazan last night, referring to ongoing talks between Malaysian agencies and US counterparts.
On the issue of sanctions against Russia, Anwar underscored that Malaysia only recognises those endorsed by multilateral institutions such as the United Nations.
“If a sanction is imposed by a multilateral agency like the UN, of course, we respect that. But if it is a unilateral action by any individual country, that is difficult for us as an independent country to just honour,” he said.
Anwar also acknowledged that some Malaysian businesses in Russia had raised concerns about payment-related issues, but said both governments were working together to address them.
“There are many areas that are not under sanction, such as education. We are moving forward in those sectors,” he added.
His visit focused on enhancing economic cooperation, particularly in the halal industry and Islamic finance.