Xi's visit to elevate China-Malaysia relations to new heights: Malaysian PM

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said that Chinese President Xi Jinping's state visit to his country will push China-Malaysia friendly relations to a new height. He also spoke highly of the Chinese leader's broad and visionary governance philosophy.

President Xi visited Malaysia's capital, Kuala Lumpur, on April 16-17 as his second state visit to the country after 12 years. Prime Minister Anwar warmly received him.

In a joint interview with China Media Group (CMG) and Malaysian media outlet Astro Awani in Malaysia's administrative capital of Putrajaya on Monday before Xi's two-day visit, Anwar talked about his expectations for this visit.

"We see President Xi's visit as far more than just a friendly exchange. It marks a new height in the friendly relations between our two countries across all areas. Malaysia and ASEAN uphold the principle of neutrality and mutual respect while seeking to maintain good relations with all countries. There are no unresolved issues between Malaysia and China. We believe that our relationship with China should not only continue but also be further elevated," he said.

The Malaysian prime minister, who last met with Xi in Beijing last November, praised the Chinese president's perspective on development, which emphasizes the need to place value on human, cultural, and civilizational development alongside economic growth, and said this vision aligns well with Malaysia's policy framework.

"During my meeting with President Xi Jinping, I said, or rather, asked what makes his thinking so distinct, so unique? I find it's because President Xi puts emphasis on cultural exchanges, mutual learning between civilizations, and shared prosperity. This kind of vision is rarely seen in today's political figures. It resonates deeply with the spirit of 'Malaysia Madani', which also upholds values, humanitarianism, and a global perspective. It's a spirit devoted to furthering cultural and ethical advancement," he said.

"President Xi's response was very thought-provoking. He said, 'Yes, we must pursue economic development, but human development cannot be separated from history, culture, or civilization.' That struck a chord with me because while we often talk about the economy, technology, digitization and AI, all of which are undeniably important, we must not lose sight of the humanistic spirit. It is only leaders and thinkers of great nations who can take such a broad, long-term view, one that goes beyond material needs alone," he added.

Xi's visit to elevate China-Malaysia relations to new heights: Malaysian PM

China's National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) will work with relevant departments and local authorities to take concrete steps to promote the implementation of the newly passed private sector promotion law, a landmark legislation concerning a vast economic force in the country, said an NDRC official.

China's top legislative body -the National People's Congress - passed the private sector promotion law on Wednesday, establishing a legal backing for the steady and healthy growth of the key sector, including more than 57 million private firms and over 100 million self-employed individuals.

This landmark law is China's first fundamental legislation dedicated to the private sector. It will bolster confidence among the vast community by improving the business environment, fostering innovation, and ensuring fair competition, according to NDRC, the country's top economic planner.

"The private sector promotion law has actively responded to the key concerns in the development of the private sector. Efforts are made to establish and improve relevant systems and enhance the enforceability of the systems, from ensuring fair competition, improving investment and financing environment, supporting technology innovation, focusing on regulated operation, optimizing services and guarantees, and improving rights and interest protection, to strengthening legal accountability, so as to ensure that all forms of ownership can equally utilize production factors by the law, participate in market competition fairly, receive equal legal protection, further unleash their complementary advantages, and pursue common development," said Liu Min, deputy director of Private Sector Development Bureau under NDRC.

Liu added NDRC will continue to work together with relevant departments and local authorities to improve supporting systems and mechanisms and take concrete steps to promote the implementation of the private sector promotion law.

"We will make continuous and increasing efforts to remove barriers to market access and to fair competition, to address the issue of overdue payments to private enterprises, to protect the lawful rights and interests of private businesses and entrepreneurs by the law, to implement various relief policies, to help private enterprises shoulder their responsibilities of the era, so as to help translate legal systems into concrete actions and tangible outcomes that promote the high-quality development of the private sector," said Liu.

Concrete steps to take for firmly implementing China's landmark private sector promotion law: official