Malaysia’s BRICS participation won’t involve free trade agreements, says Liew
17 Oct 2024
Malaysia’s participation in BRICS will not include any free trade agreement (FTA) between the country and members of the economic group, said Deputy Investment, Trade, and Industry Minister Liew Chin Tong.
Additionally, the existing FTAs between Malaysia and countries outside BRICS will remain unaffected, even if Malaysia is allowed to join BRICS, Liew noted.
“The application to join BRICS does not mean we are opening our market to everyone within the BRICS framework.
“Therefore, concerns about its impact on the competitiveness of our small and medium enterprises, as well as our products, are irrelevant,” Liew said in the Dewan Rakyat on Thursday during an oral question-and-answer session.
In July, Malaysia submitted an application to join BRICS — an intergovernmental organisation currently comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia, and the United Arab Emirates — in a bid to diversify and strengthen strategic relations with its members.
Liew said that Malaysia is actively seeking the support of BRICS members to join the economic bloc, with the foreign minister officially sending letters to counterparts in the nine BRICS countries.
He also reiterated Malaysia’s stance on its non-aligned policy, emphasising that BRICS is not an anti-Western organisation, while adding that many BRICS members maintain good relations with Western countries.
Source: The Edge Malaysia
