Challenges of Globalization: Malaysia and India Engagement

This article examines the emerging relations between India and Malaysia in the context of challenges posed by globalization and how these could be overcome by enhancing bilateral and regional linkages. It argues that globalization in the post-Cold War era has resulted in more visible trends towards economic integration. Due to the inability of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) to increase intra-regional trade, India is looking towards other regional organizations such as ASEAN to strengthen its trading links. Furthermore, there are other factors pushing India to enhance ties with ASEAN, such as the emergence of China as a competitor. Malaysia is India's largest trading partner from the ASEAN region. During the process of India's transition from a sectoral to a full dialogue partner in ASEAN, Malaysia also played a pivotal role as India's country coordinator and was tasked to integrate India further into the ASEAN region. India and Malaysia were also chosen because of their historical, cultural, social, and religious linkages. However, there remain impediments to the strengthening of bilateral ties, such as Malaysia's stand on Kashmir — an issue importing a Muslim dimension that evidently impacts upon India-Pakistan relations, and Kuala Lumpur's close ties with the Muslim world through membership in the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC).