KUALA LUMPUR: Datuk Seri Najib Razak said the government under his administration has a different approach to foreign policy, unlike that practised by a “former leader”.
The prime minister said, under his leadership, the government has forged new bonds with foreign countries, especially in the region, while at the same time strengthening existing ones.
This, he said, was important to ensure the well-being of everyone in the region.
“It is true that Malaysia before this had a leader who had a foreign policy which was confrontational, who acted out of anger and seems unable to let go of old grievances,” he said in his keynote address at the World Capital Market Symposium 2018.
Najib, who is also finance minister, said this different foreign policy had allowed Malaysia and Singapore to reach a win-win agreement on Keretapi Tanah Melayu Bhd land in Singapore, resulting in the signing of the agreement on the High-Speed Rail project which will reduce travel time by rail between the capitals of both countries to only 90 minutes.
In fact, he said, Malaysia was now involved in various projects with Singapore, including the Johor Baru-Singapore Rapid Transit System and the development of Marina One, a joint venture between Khazanah Nasional and Temasek Holdings, valued at S$11 billion (RM32.57 billion).
Najib said, at the domestic level, the government ensured that capitalism, commerce and the economy were in line with its aim of ensuring the well-being of Malaysians.
He said Malaysia was in a new era, where the “crony capitalism” practised in the past should stay in the past, adding that the focus was now on corporate management and a solid monitoring of the economy.