China Suddenly Praises Malaysian PM Anwar Ibrahim, What's Behind It?
The Chinese government has suddenly praised Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim. This came after the 79-year-old commented on ‘One China’ in a global interview with Al Jazeera earlier last week.
The ‘One China’ principle is actually related to Taiwan. It refers to there being only one China, in which Taiwan is part of the People’s Republic of China, which represents China.
Anwar at the time expressed his support for the principle. He defended China’s right to use force if peaceful reunification across the Taiwan Strait fails.
In the latest Channel News Asia (CNA) report on Thursday (20/8/2026), China said Anwar’s stance reflects public sentiment and the international community’s commitment to the principle, which ‘must not be shaken’. A special post was made by China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs to Anwar via social media platform X.
‘China praises Malaysian PM Anwar Ibrahim’s statement on the Taiwan issue and his firm stance on the One China principle,’ the ministry stressed.
‘Nothing will stop China from reuniting,’ the statement read.
Similar remarks were made by Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian. According to him, upholding the ‘One China’ principle reflects public sentiment and ‘sides with what is right’.
‘There is only one China in the world and Taiwan is an inalienable part of China’s territory,’ Lin said in response to Anwar’s statement, as published by Xinhua.
‘China’s reunification is an unstoppable historical trend,’ he said.
China has never withdrawn the option of using force to bring Taiwan under its control, but Beijing says it prioritises ‘peaceful reunification’.
Although countries have different interpretations of the ‘One China’ policy, Malaysia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a joint statement with China in 2025 stated that Malaysia recognises the government of the People’s Republic of China as ‘the sole legitimate government of China’.
The statement referred to Taiwan as ‘an inalienable territory of the People’s Republic of China’. To help China achieve national reunification, Malaysia also stated it ‘will not support any calls for Taiwan independence’.
Previously, in the interview with Al Jazeera, Anwar, who spoke with journalist Sreenivasan Jain on the programme ‘A Changing World? The Contest for Global Power’, was asked about his views on Taiwan’s reluctance to accept Chinese rule. The interviewer asked whether the wishes of the Taiwanese people were not taken into account, given that various polls show a majority of Taiwanese do not want to be governed by Beijing.
Anwar replied that historical reasons must be considered. He stressed that Taiwan is indeed part of China.
‘I see Taiwan as part of China, full stop,’ Anwar said.
‘We may not agree with… There are some things that are excessive. Yes, state your views. But it must be within that context. This is one China. That is accepted by all parties,’ he said.
When asked about China’s position of retaining the right to use force if peaceful reunification fails, Anwar used Malaysia as an example. When asked whether that meant he would use force in the event of a possible secession, Anwar answered ‘yes’.
‘I would use Malaysia as an example. If one province decided to secede, would we use force? I think I would protect the sanctity and unity of the nation,’ he said.
‘Yes, otherwise the country would break apart,’ he said.
Taiwan’s response
On the other hand, Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs quickly condemned Anwar’s statement. The ministry said Anwar made ‘erroneous’ remarks by ‘absurdly implying that Taiwan is a Chinese province that is seceding and openly justifying China’s position to reunify Taiwan through force’.
‘Given the close relationship between national sovereignty and economic security, Ibrahim’s support for China could negatively affect the confidence of Taiwanese businesses investing in Malaysia,’ the ministry added, as quoted by Taiwan News.