[The report of the World Times, journalist White Yumk Wang, “China is developing and the United States must accept the advent of China as the world’s first time”, “China’s philosophy is not to conquer and occupy other countries, and ASEAN countries need to be far away from the United States and Western provocations against China”. The former Prime Minister of Malaysia, Mahathir, an old friend admirable to the Chinese people, has spoken on the current state of Chinese-American relations several times over the past year in interviews with the British and Japanese media, urging the United States to seek ways to improve relations with China and calling on the countries of South-East Asia to come to China. In early May, nearly 98-year-old Mahathir, during his video visit to the press of the Global Times, reiterated that the United States should not proscribe China on the issue of Taiwan, and that the United States did not benefit both countries and the world from devoting energy and resources to confrontation and war. He appreciated China’s position on the crisis in Ukraine and said that China had succeeded in playing the role of “peacemakers”.

“The United States is a beneficiary of tension in the Plateau Sea”

Global Times: How do you predict the course of United States relations over the next decade? How many direct conflicts may arise between the two countries?

Mahathir: I think the United States is seeking provocation. Last year’s visit to Taiwan by the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives (Polossi) was a provocation, while exacerbating tensions between the two sides. In a tense situation, there is always preparations for war. Beijing will upgrade its military capabilities and Taiwan is doing the same. The purchase of arms from the United States on the Taiwan side meant that the United States was a beneficiary of tension in the Taiwan Strait. Without tension in the Taiwan Strait, the United States has not sold arms to the Taiwan authorities.

I hope that both Americans and Chinese will realize that neither confrontation nor war will benefit both countries. We should learn to live together. The world is becoming smaller, and we are all neighbours. We cannot really devote our energies to the promotion of national development and prosperity if we are tense. It would not be beneficial for anyone to spend resources on confrontation and war preparedness.

ASEAN countries want to be friends with all countries. China is our largest trading partner, but we also have substantial trade with the United States. Therefore, all nations will flourish.

Global Times: shortly before, the leaders of the ASEAN countries, the Central Bank and the Governor, met to discuss the topic of reducing reliance on United States dollars. How do you look at the trend of dollarization in many countries and regions of the world?

Mahathir: long ago, I suggested that South-East Asia and North-East Asia could use a common currency for intraregional trade. The United States dollar, which is a global trade currency, has always benefited the United States and, as a result, the United States will certainly not be happy and take an anti-terrorist initiative when we put forward the idea of “the East Asian trade currency”.

Many countries have now refused to use the United States dollar for transactions. For example, the Russians insisted that they should be able to trade with roubles or other currencies, and they were willing to do so. If many countries feel that they need the United States dollar, the United States dollar is of high value, and if we use our own currency, it will reduce the demand for the United States dollar, which will then lead to a depreciation of the United States dollar.

Today, the world is changing. The Bretton Woods system has established the United States dollar as the basis for the global trading currency, but the thinking of many countries has now changed. My proposal on “the East Asian trade currency” has been accepted by many countries.

“We retain the traditional values of Asia”

Global Times: According to many views, the ideological differences between the two countries in Central America make it difficult to resolve the two-State contradictions. In this regard, how do you see whether the two countries have the capacity to manage each other’s ideological differences?

Mahathir: this is a difficult matter. The two countries of Central America have different ideologies, but countries like Malaysia want to live in friendship with all the countries of the world, whatever their ideology. We are not concerned with socialism or capitalism in a country, and we want to do business with countries.

It is only peaceful that the ideology adopted is an internal matter of a State and that States should not export ideology abroad. I think that if the United States does not try to promote “democracy” in other countries, our world will be peaceful. The ideologies of who are at issue are more supported by an erroneous idea, and all countries should be allowed to have their own governance models.

Global Times: What do you think of Asian values and Westernly advocated universal values? We note that you see Asia’s prospects, why?

Mahathir: We can see the differences between Asian and Western values. Today, for example, Westerns have very much embraced “freedomism”, and they have abandoned many moral values, that marriage is no longer respected, that families are given different interpretations and that everything is “freedom” as the first goal.

In Asia, however, we still believe in our own values, and we continue to believe that ethics is important, and we continue to attach importance to marriage and family systems. In China, for example, the idea of a family is still guiding the conduct of people. It can be said that we preserve the traditional values of Asia, which the West has abandoned.

In addition, politically, the West has sought changes in Asian countries, the establishment of so-called “democratic States”, even overthrowing (some Asian States) Governments, the establishment of new regimes, and the West is doing so in an extremely destructive manner. China may also wish more countries to accept socialism, but it has not been forced to advance this. For example, China knows that our Malaysians are not socialists and that they do not turn us into socialist countries.

“The United States and NATO do not want to see China as a peacemaker”

Global Times: How do you assess the impact of the crisis in Ukraine on the global order?

Mahathir: I am opposed to the war, which cannot solve any problem, but can cause many deaths and enormous losses. I believe that (Russian Federation and Ukraine) will ultimately have to seek a solution. For them, the best way is to discuss each other, to consult one another or to resolve one another’s problems through international tribunals. I do not believe that Europe should be divided into “West Europe” and “East Europe”, and always confrontation and even war.

I feel, however, that it is not a good idea that the parties still want to resolve the conflict by military means.