Chinese VP in Malaysia on way to United States

Chinese VP in Malaysia on way to United States

Simon Cameron-Moore, Reuters, Kuala Lumpur

China's enigmatic heir apparent, Vice President Hu Jintao, arrived in Malaysia on Tuesday on a trip that will also take him to the United States in his biggest step yet on the world stage.

The April 23-May 3 tour, including Hu's first official visit to Washington, underlines his position as the man who will be succeeding Jiang Zemin as Communist Party chief later this year and as president in 2003.

In Malaysia and Singapore, two of Southeast Asia's richest nations, Hu visits countries keen to be in the slipstream of China's economic juggernaut, even as they lose investment and export markets to their giant northern neighbor.

Before going to Washington, Hu can expect to hear Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad express concern about U.S. unilateralism and its unstinting support for Israel.

"Like most small countries, Malaysia is uncomfortable with the unipolar world," said Abdul Razak Baginda, director of the Malaysian Strategic Research Center.

"It would like a strategic regional counterbalance to the United States, which wants to impose its own model of political and economic value systems," he said.

But China and Malaysia are also fighting Islamic militancy at home and both have expressed support for the U.S. war on terror. Mahathir, in fact, goes to Washington next month to collect U.S. thanks for his role in the war on terrorism.

The challenge awaiting Hu in Washington is to present a moderate image and build a rapport with U.S. President George Bush while standing firm on the sensitive issue of Taiwan, with which the U.S. administration appears determined to upgrade ties.

"This will be in some ways a test of his diplomatic skills," said one Asian diplomat. "We don't expect anything substantial to emerge, but it is important for his political future that everything goes smoothly."

With U.S. troops helping fight Moro rebels in the Philippines, and Indonesia edging back into Washington's good books, hawks in Beijing fear U.S. "encirclement".

With less than six months until the leadership change, Hu must be careful not to upstage Jiang, who is widely believed to harbor ambitions to wield power from "behind the curtain" after retiring from the country's top jobs.

Hu's visit to Southeast Asia comes just as the leader of Asia's other major power revived bad memories from World War II.

Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's surprise visit to Yasukini Shrine, where war criminals are honored along with the nation's war dead, drew angry responses from China and Korea.

Southeast Asian nations also suffered under Japanese occupation and they are now watching China's rising economic power while Japan stagnates.

Last November, China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations agreed to work towards a free trade area within 10 years, while Japan watched on the sidelines of the summit in Brunei. ASEAN groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

In a sharp reversal of fortunes from the early 1990s, China sucked up about 50 percent of foreign direct investment in Asia, excluding Japan, while the 10-member Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) attracted 20 percent, he added.

Wealthy ethnic Chinese in both Singapore and Malaysia are now relishing opportunities to invest in the ancestral homeland.

Mahathir has long advocated economic partnership with China, proposing it more than a decade ago to rival the trade blocks in Europe and North America.

The veteran Malaysian leader spoke up for China's admission to the World Trade Organisation but often warns of the pitfalls of globalization.

"Malaysia will hope China will represent resistance to the opening up of markets too fast to free trade," said K.T. Lim, analyst at the Institute of Strategic and International Studies.

While in Malaysia, Hu will also visit Penang, the hub for the country's electronics industry and the country's only Chinese- majority state.

He goes to Singapore on April 26.

During his trip to the U.S., which starts on April 27, Hu will visit Honolulu, San Francisco, New York and Washington, where he is expected to meet Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney.