Malaysia stumbles in rapprochement with China

Raids on Chinese state-owned firms by KL's anti-graft agency throw spanner in the works

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang reads a letter from Malaysia's Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad as Kuala Lumpur's special envoy Daim Zainuddin looks on at the Zhongnanhai Leadership Compound in Beijing last Wednesday. Mr Daim was in China to try and get ti
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang reads a letter from Malaysia's Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad as Kuala Lumpur's special envoy Daim Zainuddin looks on at the Zhongnanhai Leadership Compound in Beijing last Wednesday. Mr Daim was in China to try and get ties with the country back on track ahead of Dr Mahathir's official visit to Beijing next month. PHOTO: AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
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Malaysia's bid to reset its testy relations with China hit a nasty bump last week.

A carefully planned high-level bilateral pow-wow in Beijing was thrown off the tracks by a set of synchronised anti-corruption raids here on two China state-owned entities handling billions of dollars in infrastructure projects.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Sunday Times on July 22, 2018, with the headline Malaysia stumbles in rapprochement with China. Subscribe