KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia is the right choice for BRICS membership due to its strategic location, which positions the country as important and relevant in the geopolitical and strategic landscape of Southeast Asia, particularly in the context of the South China Sea.
Professor Dr Mohd Mizan Mohammad Aslam, from the Department of International Relations, Security, and Law at the National Defence University of Malaysia (UPNM), stated that the South China Sea has become a thorn in the side, serving as a focal point for great power competition, including the United States, China, and European countries.
"Malaysia's location makes us very important and crucial.We hold the route between east and west, which is highly strategic. This makes the West uneasy, as they do not want us to side with the East.
"But this situation offers us an advantage, with our economy currently experiencing significant growth, which makes us the right choice for BRICS membership," he said.
BRICS was established in 2009 as a cooperation platform for emerging economies comprising Brazil, Russia, India, and China with South Africa joining the group in 2010.
In January 2024, Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia, and the UAE joined the organisation as new members. Malaysia has expressed its desire to join the BRICS cooperation group and in July, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said Malaysia had sent a formal application to to Russia, the BRICS chair.
Speaking on Bernama TV's "Ruang Bicara" programme titled "BRICS: Malaysia and ASEAN's Potential on the Geopolitical Stage" on Wednesday, Mohd Mizan said Malaysia's potential membership in BRICS could offer new opportunities in security, technology, and sovereignty.
Although Malaysia applied to join BRICS, Malaysia will still pay attention to the issue of national sovereignty, he said.
"There is no pressure for us to join BRICS. This is our choice, and we can collaborate in technology, which in previous collaborations with the West, we were merely consumers," he said, adding that if Malaysia aligns with the east or BRICS, it can see a different orientation, including technology transfer and more.
When asked whether Malaysia's participation in BRICS could impact its relations with Western powers, Mohd Mizan said he did not foresee that happening.
He added that BRICS is seen as a platform for developing and low-income countries to demand justice and equality in the global economy.
He noted that economic sanctions are often used by Western powers as a tool to influence or force other countries to follow their will.