RSIS Webinar on “The Anwar Administration’s Foreign Policy: Fresh Start, Old Constraints?”

The new Anwar administration has ushered in a fresh start to Malaysia’s foreign policy priorities. This includes re-invigorating Malaysia’s role as key Southeast Asian state by bolstering its activism in regional affairs and on specific issues of global significance. This is manifest in Malaysia’s diplomatic activism in the United Nations and ASEAN in meeting regional challenges and its strong advocacy of non-alignment vis-à-vis all major powers. On top of that, the Anwar government is focused on strengthening its Islamic diplomacy and building cooperative ties with diverse countries to promote international trade and investments, which are critical for Malaysia’s economic growth. However, Malaysia, like several other countries, has faced recent challenges arising from the destructive impact of Covid-19 and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, intensifying US-China competition, and heightened domestic political contestation. But, with crisis come opportunities.