Alibaba founder Jack Ma on Monday took on the role of conciliator during the inauguration of the tech giant’s Kuala Lumpur offices, calling for stronger trade and business ties to ease tensions between China and Malaysia that escalated following prime minister Mahathir Mohamad’s surprise electoral win last month.
Mr Mahathir has vowed to review all Chinese projects and any “unequal treaties,” jeapordising Beijing’s relations with Malaysia that had flourished under former premier Najib Razak.
Mr Ma addressed worries over Sino-Malaysian relations directly during Alibaba’s ceremony. “Many people are worried about [this]…I am very confident in Malaysia[‘s] and China[‘s] relationship…This problem can be solved,” he said, underscoring that China is now Malaysia’s largest business partner.