Kuala lumpur: Malaysia’s position as ASEAN Chair in 2025 presents a strategic opportunity to reshape the regional security landscape, particularly in ensuring the region remains free of nuclear weapons. This comes in the wake of Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan’s recent statement that China and Russia have agreed to sign the Treaty on the Southeast Asia Nuclear Weapon-Free Zone (SEANWFZ), while the United States is currently reviewing the possibility of becoming a signatory.
According to BERNAMA News Agency, Associate Professor Dr Mazlan Ali of the Perdana Centre, Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities at Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, described the development as a breakthrough, ending nearly two decades of stalemate in efforts to get all five states recognised under the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) to become signatories. He emphasized that Malaysia has the chance to emerge as a successful facilitator on a critically important global security issue, marking a significant achievement for ASEAN and boosting Malaysia’s influence in regional and global dialogues on disarmament and peace diplomacy.
The meeting of the Executive Committee of the Southeast Asia Nuclear Weapon-Free Zone Commission (SEANWFZ ExCom) is scheduled to take place alongside the 58th ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting (AMM) and related meetings at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre, with participation from the US, Russia, the UK, and China. Mazlan noted that securing support from these nations would become a major legacy of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s leadership, who is an advocate for the Global South on international issues.
Meanwhile, the Chairman of the Centre for Human Rights Research and Advocacy (CENTHRA), Azril Mohd Amin, stated that strengthening SEANWFZ is vital not only for regional security but also as a moral and legal commitment to global peace. He explained that SEANWFZ is a legally binding instrument that institutionalizes nuclear disarmament in Southeast Asia, rejecting strategic inequality and upholding multilateral principles.
Azril proposed that Malaysia, as ASEAN Chair, leverage its position to unite ASEAN member states, including convening a summit and forming a task force to coordinate negotiations with major powers. He highlighted the potential for the Kuala Lumpur Declaration 2025 to act as a catalyst for renewed political commitment towards this treaty.
Dr Noor Nirwandy Mat Noordin, a Fellow in Psychological Operations at the Centre for Media and Information Warfare Studies at UiTM, emphasized the significance of Malaysia’s efforts to revive the SEANWFZ agenda amid rising great-power tensions. He noted that ASEAN’s diplomatic approach provides moral authority to remain a zone of peace, with Malaysia well-positioned to re-elevate these principles as a model of peaceful diplomacy.
The SEANWFZ Treaty, also known as the Bangkok Treaty, was signed in December 1995 by all ten ASEAN member states and came into force in March 1997. Under its protocol, nuclear-weapon states are required to respect the treaty, refrain from violations, and pledge not to use or threaten nuclear weapons within the zone.