By He Jianwu, Research Team on “Deepening Cooperation with Malaysia under the Belt and Road Initiative”, DRC

Research Report, No.37, 2019 (Total 5537) 2019-3-21

Abstract: Malaysia is located in the core of Southeast Asia, close to the Malacca Strait, and is an important pivot joint connecting the markets of ASEAN, South Asia and the Middle East. It is of great significance to promote the Belt and Road (BRI) cooperation because of Malaysia’s favorable geographical location and long history as well as the cultural and economic ties between China and Malaysia. In order to further deepen the two countries’ cooperation, the research team of the Development Research Center of the State Council (DRC) conducted an in-depth research at the end of 2018. The research report concludes the progress made in BRI cooperation between China and Malaysia, and analyzes the problems and challenges facing their cooperation from the perspective of government change, public awareness, strategic alignment, complementary development and ethnic conflicts. In addition, the report points out that there is great room for cooperation and huge potential of both countries in the fields of agriculture, food, electronics, automobile and third-party markets. Lastly, it provides some policy options for deepening the cooperation between China and Malaysia.

Key words: Belt and Road, policy coordination, Malaysia