Kuala Lampur, May 23 -- The inaugural Asean-GCC-China Summit due to be held in Kuala Lumpur on May 27 constitutes a new, innovative chapter in global politics. An exercise in inter-civilisational cooperation, the recognition of shared values, and the fostering of mutual respect, it represents a decisive break from existing narratives defined by Western imperialistic interests.

Concurrently, however, it also revives a longstanding tradition of Islamic-Confucian dialogue, one stretching back over a millennium, and in which Malaysia has consistently played a prominent role.

Beginning in the fifteenth century, Malaysia's Melaka Sultanate, the linchpin of Islamic civilisation in the Malay world, formed a special relationship with China that ...