The prime minister of Malaysia Najib Raza arrived in China to talk to President Xi Jinping and was open for discussion on Chinese trade and the naval dispute on the South China Sea.
The move of the Malaysian prime minister followed the Philippines' suit in terms of Chinese diplomatic relations. Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte pronounced his pro-China sentiments before and after his meeting with the Chinese president.
According to Euan Graham, director of the international security program at the Lowy Institute for International Policy in Sydney, "Malaysia being a South China Sea claimant, and hot on the heels of Duterte, there is an obvious symbolism there. In the maritime geopolitical aspect, it's almost back to dominoes. The Philippines has caved, and Malaysia looks wobbly."
Upon returning to the Philippines from his China trip, President Duterte reported that the Philippines' ties with China are tighter.
He said, "My state visit to China signaled a turning point in our shared history and showed that both countries are fully capable of working together for mutually beneficial cooperation even as we remain committed to settling disputes peacefully in full adherence to international law."
He added, "To realize the vision of a deeper and more meaningful engagement, we have opened formal lines of communications between our government and agreed on the full resumption of the regular bilateral consultations mechanisms which were put on hold for several years."
Following the Philippines' move, Najib is expected to discuss a high-speed rail project, real estate, energy projects and "the first significant defense deal."
"Beggars can't be choosers," said James Chin, director of the Asia Institute at the University of Tasmania, and noted that the prime minister is pressured to close deals before the elections next year.