Opinion | Why the US should not push Malaysia to pick sides in Washington’s rivalry with China

In April, when Huawei was still reeling from the US global ban, Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad came out openly supporting the Chinese hi-tech company in Malaysia’s 5G roll-out. This, Youth Minister Syed Saddiq explained, is Malaysia choosing not to bow to the bullies of the West.

Then in May, the Royal Malaysian Navy announced the acceptance from the Americans of a gift of 12 surveillance drones. This, the Defence Ministry duly made clear, is “in line with the nation’s non-partisan position and to forge a friendship with everyone”.

But the days for such a balancing act could be numbered. At the Asean summit in Bangkok this week, China and the US have ramped up efforts to win over support of the grouping’s member states. To counteract China’s Belt and Road Initiative, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is pushing the US-led Indo-Pacific Strategy. In fact, the Trump administration has been pressuring countries to pick sides. China, Washington warned, has morphed into an overwhelming “threat” unlike any other. And the free world now faces an existential crisis, with a clash of civilisations, between good and evil, looming on the horizon.