KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 26 (Bernama) -- The Asia-Pacific can only thrive through openness, integration and resilience, with protectionism and isolation threatening to weaken the region’s role as the “heartbeat of global prosperity”, said Institute of Strategic and International Studies (ISIS) Malaysia chairman Datuk Prof Dr Mohd Faiz Abdullah.
He said while the Asia-Pacific remains “the most dynamic growth engine”, it faces “significant headwinds” due to protectionist measures.
“Rather regrettably, protectionist measures such as tethers and export bans have become prominent features of our current trade landscape.
“These challenges are not passing storms, they are structural shifts that test the cohesion and resilience of the region,” he said.
He was speaking during the ‘More Openness & Better Connectivity the Future of Asia Pacific Integration” session at the Kuala Lumpur Roundtable on Asia-Pacific Regional Cooperation of the Boao Forum for Asia, here, Tuesday.
The session was chaired by Boao Forum for Asia Secretary-General Zhang Jun.
Elaborating, Mohd Faiz said that “prosperity has never been achieved through isolation. It was openness, integration and connectivity that brought strength and opportunity to the Asia-Pacific.”
He also underscored the need to defend multilateralism and modernise trade by reforming the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and strengthening regional agreements such as the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).
“Reform of the WTO is essential more than ever if it is to regain credibility as an important and impartial empire of global trade,” he said.
He added that regional agreements “must evolve to incorporate digital trade, data governance and climate alliance standards.”
On connectivity, Mohd Faiz described it as “the lifeline of integration” and urged that it be understood in its full dimension.
“Physical networks such as ports, grids, transport systems are of course vital, but so too are digital highways that ensure secure data flows and human networks that enable skills negotiation, skills recognition, academic exchanges and labour mobility,” he said.
Mohd Faiz also urged Asia-Pacific nations to commit to building a shared future.
“Openness, connectivity and resilience, these are not abstract ideas. They are the very lifelines of Asia-Pacific integration.
“If we weaken them, all will suffer. If we strengthen them, all will thrive. We must therefore choose to build it, not to break it, so that Asia-Pacific remains the very heartbeat of global prosperity,” he said.
-- BERNAMA
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