KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 14 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim today defended his decision to invite US President Donald Trump to the Asean Summit later this month, as he addressed Global South leaders and thinkers at a conference to discuss a more just international order.
Anwar said South-east Asian countries are not submitting to Western powers just because it chose to maintain good ties with Washington, calling it a practical move to utilise diplomatic channels as a way to advance peace “in an imperfect world”.
Malaysia’s tenth prime minister is facing some criticism from his own base for extending the invite to Trump, who is seen as having played an active role in Israel’s onslaught against Palestinians in Gaza.
“I’ve been asked about Trump‘s visit. I’ve explained to the House, we would continue to engage but we would still state our opposition fervently and clearly as we have done so,” he said in a keynote speech at the Kuala Lumpur Conference On A New Just And Humane International Order 2025 here.
“Diplomacy is not a means to soothe our outrage or to massage our sense of place in the world…it is a practical work of protecting our interests and advancing peace in an imperfect world,” Anwar added.
“True diplomacy is not a dance of convenience but a contest of endurance. It demands balance, discipline, and the courage to stay the course even when the ground shifts beneath us.”
Trump could be among several top Western leaders attending the Asean Summit, which will take place in the last week of October in Malaysia’s capital.
South-east Asian nations were among those hit with the highest import “reciprocal” levies that Trump announced on April 1, in a move the US president said was aimed at “correcting” trade imbalances and shift manufacturing jobs back to the US.
While Putrajaya could have challenged the tariffs, it opted to negotiate instead. Anwar said Malaysia, the current chair of the ten-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations, would continue to rely on diplomatic channels to find solutions.
Still, Trump’s tariffs have prompted Asean members to actively diversify its export markets, spurring interest in new multilateral deals with different economic blocs, including Brics+.
At today’s conference, Anwar said that South-east Asian countries have the right to pursue deals with anyone so as long as it puts Asean first, describing it as “active non-alignment”.
“Active non-alignment is not neutrality and it is not indecision. Here is Asean we popularise the term Asean centrality – which allows us to engage with everyone,” he said.
“But we have to decide our positions by ourselves, guided by our values and interests.”
The 10 Asean member countries has a combined GDP of around US$3.4 trillion (RM14.4 trillion), making it the fifth largest economy in the world and ahead of economies like India and Brazil.
