The Indo-Pacific (IP), the region covering the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Region, is concurrently shaping the posture of international affairs. As a littoral state and critical partner in the IP construct, Malaysia’s responses to this stance are inevitable due to its geostrategic location in the construct. This article argues that Malaysia’s posture vis-à-vis the IP as that of a ‘neutralist’. The discussion is divided into two sections. The first section describes weaknesses in the quadrilateral security dialogues (Quad) centrality using the features of regional security complex theory (RSCT). The second section discusses Malaysia’s neutrality vis-à-vis the IP construct. The article argues that, while opportunities can be seen in terms of strengthening the existing relations and tapping into new areas of partnership, Malaysia may face challenges in the form of marginalisation and entrapment. Apprehension is still prominent; therefore, the concept is in a ‘wait and see’ mode. The article concludes that the catalyst is found by drawing a more effective vision of the concept and is the key, particularly if the IP aspires to attract and appeal to Southeast Asian countries such as Malaysia.
Border security is an essential component of Malaysia’s defence and security policy. During the COVID-19 outbreak, Malaysia’s border security management was tested with the increase of illegal entry into the country. The central argument of this paper is that, whilst Movement Control Order (MCO), or lockdown as it is more commonly known, aims to restrict movement, this limited movement was exploited for illegal entries into the country, leading to the establishment of the National Task Force (NTF), which coordinated various enforcement agencies to safeguard Malaysian territory. On this ground, this paper aims to analyse the role of the NTF in responding to increasing illegal activities amidst the pandemic. The discussion is divided into: (a) identifying illegal entries during the pandemic; (b) the impact of illegal entries to border management in Malaysia; (c) examining the roles of the NTF in responding to the illegal activities; and (d) the impact of the NTF in border security management in Malaysia. As a preliminary study, this paper only uses secondary data collection in addressing the problem statement. Keywords: National task force; COVID-19 pandemic; Illegal activities; Illegal immigrants; Border security managemen
The Indian Ocean Region (IOR) is rising significantly as the center stage for world politics in the current century. Due to the geostrategic and economic importance, the region has created conflicts in strategic interest leading to power confrontation among regional and extra-regional powers resulting in security threats for small littorals like Bangladesh. Some of the threats are influential attachments of the powerful states in foreign, trade, economy and defense sectors, poor regional security architecture and an increase of non-traditional security threats. Analyzing the issues reveals that, Bangladesh can navigate these challenges by playing strategic hedging, pursuing multilateralism, recalibrating trade and economic engagements, and comprehensive drive by government agencies to deal with non-traditional security threats.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, international cross-border restrictions were implemented worldwide. In Malaysia, it was anticipated that the Movement Control Order (MCO) would negatively impact the maritime business as badly as it would on most other economic activities in the country. However, the lockdown in Malaysia, which aimed to “restrict movement”, “reduce contact” and further “isolate the virus”, did not impact maritime business as much as other industries. In fact, the maritime waterways remained the main artery to transport essential goods nationwide during the pandemic. This paper analyses the impact of the pandemic on the maritime business in Malaysia by studying the commercial and technical aspects. Primarily, the paper focuses on dry bulk trade, container business, port infrastructure, and parties involved in the maritime supply chains. It finds that the impact of the pandemic was minimal, and certainly not as prominent as anticipated; in fact, the Baltic Dry index touched a new high during this period. This paper uses secondary data and draws on the analyses of the Baltic Dry Index, Platts Report by S&P, and Review of Maritime Transport by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. The paper is divided into three sections: The changes in selected maritime sectors before and during the pandemic, the factors affecting dry bulk market growth in Malaysia, and the lessons learnt and corresponding recommendations to improve Malaysian maritime business post-pandemic.
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