In an address opening the 30th anniversary meeting of foreign ministers of the Association of South East Asian Nations, Dr Mahathir stressed that the key to peace, stability and progress in the region depended on prosperity. This is not due to altruism. It is really motivated by selfishness.
Prosperous neighbours make good trading partners and give each other less problems.
The problems of poor neighbours tend to spill over their borders. We should actively help each other. Certainly the newer members of our Association are going to need help in order to catch up with the older members. We must help every country to make use of this formula so that we can all be stable and prosperous. In helping our fellow members to prosper, we are in fact helping to reduce conflict in our countries.