Washington might paint Malaysia as antagonistic to the US, said Hoo Ke Ping, the author of several books on international economics.
Speaking to FMT, he recalled that Washington had opposed the EAEC as a form of regional protectionism when Mahathir made the proposal 20 years ago.
Hoo supported Mahathir’s argument that the US was now becoming protectionist and therefore had no right to oppose the EAEC.
However, he warned that a harsh reaction from Washington might include a bar against imports of Malaysian products.
He noted that Malaysia had already signed the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership and would be party to the proposed Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP).
“If we revive the EAEC on top of the RCEP, we might be seen as being anti-American because it will be seen as another protectionist bloc that excludes the US,” he said.
“And although China will like the revival of the EAEC, we must remember that the US is still the biggest destination for our electronics products, whether directly or indirectly.
“I think it will be more prudent to look at the trade deals we’re already involved in, carefully weigh the benefits and study the impact that renegotiating, pulling out or entering new deals may have on trade, job creation and investments into Malaysia by multinational corporations.”
He said Malaysia had become a much more open country than it was before and had joined the ranks of countries with the largest trade volumes. Entering into new protectionist blocs may not be in the country’s best interest, he added.
Mahathir brought up the EAEC proposal again yesterday at the Nikkei conference in Tokyo.
When he first proposed it 1997, he visualised it as a grouping of Asean countries, China, Japan and South Korea. In his speech yesterday, he suggested that it be expanded to include India and other countries, such as those in Central Asia.