China, Asean and GCC countries should jointly uphold open regionalism and true multilateralism, Chinese Premier Li Qiang said.
“At a time when unilateralism and protectionism are on the rise and world economic growth is sluggish,” Li said, China, Asean and GCC countries “should strengthen co-ordination and co-operation and jointly uphold open regionalism and true multilateralism,” he said in Kuala Lumpur yesterday.
Li called for expanded trade and investment ties with Malaysia, urging the two countries to safeguard free and multilateral trade in a meeting with Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, Xinhua reported.
The Chinese premier is in Kuala Lumpur for a summit with leaders from Southeast Asian and Gulf countries, following a three-day visit to Indonesia.
Li’s meeting with Anwar also comes after Chinese President Xi Jinping toured the region last month at the height of Beijing’s tariff confrontation with Washington.
Although a trade truce between the world’s two largest economies was announced this month, Beijing is still seeking to consolidate ties with other economies.
China is willing to work with Malaysia to “promote closer economic co-operation among the three parties” and respond to global challenges, Li told Anwar.
Asean is China’s largest trading partner, with total trade value reaching $234 billion in the first quarter of 2025, according to Chinese customs data, while China is the GCC’s top trading partner.
The GCC’s total commodity trade with China reached almost $298bn in 2023, while the bloc accounted for 36 per cent of China’s total crude oil imports that year, according to UN figures.
The GCC said it had agreed to launch free trade talks with Malaysia on the sidelines of the GCC-Asean Summit.
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