After making a triumphant return to Parliament, PKR president-elect and prime minister-in-waiting Anwar Ibrahim is slated to visit Beijing next week.

Anwar's Beijing visit is on the invitation of the International Department of the Communist Party of China.

Several international relations experts believe that Anwar will be looking to smoothen ties with China, following Putrajaya's decision to review several major China-linked projects.

Southern University College lecturer and political scientist Phoon Wing Keong said Anwar is expected to play a counterpoint role to Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad's hawkish stance on these projects.

"China had several engagements with Mahathir and found that he took a very strong stance. Hence, they may pin their hopes on Anwar," he said.

Anwar, said Phoon, is a master of diplomatic language which could help ease tensions between the two countries.

He said Anwar told a forum in Hong Kong that despite Putrajaya's need to review some of the China-linked projects, the relationship between the two countries was still strong.

"Such tactful wording could allay China's anxiety or worry....

"At the same event, Anwar said: 'China is a great economy, we want to sustain the Malaysia-China friendship'... He mentioned Pakatan Harapan is reviewing dubious projects by BN government, but it doesn't mean to put China in cold storage.

"This is not saying he is soft, but he uses rhetoric to ease the tension between both countries," said Phoon.

On speculation by international press that Anwar may bring up Beijing's treatment of ethnic Uighurs, particularly in regard to their rights to religion and freedom of movement, Phoon said this issue would be a test of Anwar's diplomatic skills.

He said Anwar could potentially kill two birds with one stone by projecting Malaysia as a defender of human rights and reinforce Harapan's image domestically on political Islam.

"Anwar is known for his ties with Turkey. He could facilitate talks on the Uighur issue," said Phoon.

Engaging civilisations

Meanwhile, Universiti Malaya Institute of China Studies acting director Ngeow Chow Bing said the party-to-party nature of the invitation meant that Anwar and Beijing will not face the same pressures as Mahathir's official visit in August.

"I think he will enjoy an exchange that is neither supercilious nor obsequious. He will meet China leaders on the sidelines.

"This will be a knowledge-exchange trip and not government-to-government arrangement," he said.

Ngeow said Malaysia and China's relationship had mostly been built on mutual economic benefit, but Anwar is capable of injecting a scholarly element during this visit.

Anwar will be delivering a lecture titled "Malaysia's rule of law and the future of China-Malaysia cooperation" at Renmin University, one of the most important universities in China.

"By speaking at a prestigious Chinese university, Anwar will have a scholarly appearance ... Anwar has a civilisation-engagement mindset. He could not possibly overlook China, an East Asian civilisation.

"He wrote The Asian Renaissance and proposed civilisation engagement in 1990s. He did not agree with the Clash of Civilisations (by Samuel P Huntington) and has a certain respect for Confucianism," Ngeow said.

Anwar is no stranger to the university lecture circuit, having taught at Oxford’s St Antony's College, Johns Hopkins University and Georgetown University, among other famous institutions.

Anwar is expected to leave for Beijing on Oct 22, accompanied by a small delegation comprising Tanjong Malim MP Chang Lih Kang and special envoy to Beijing Tan Kok Wai.