KUALA LUMPUR, March 22: Former Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamad on Wednesday warned that a free-trade agreement (FTA) with the United States may harm the economy and constrain government policy. “I worry the FTA with the US may have an adverse effect on us,” Mr Mahathir told reporters.

The two countries announced early this month that they were to begin FTA talks after Washington worked out accords with some 14 other countries.

Mr Mahathir said he was concerned over any FTA because the United States was looking in particular at government procurement, a key area which had been used in the past to promote the economic standing of native Malays or Bumiputras.

“I understand the Americans are particularly interested in government procurement. They want to be able to access government procurement but we have used government procurement in order to correct the (economic) imbalances under the New Economic Policy to give the Bumiputras a chance.

“If we lose that we will not be able to correct the (imbalances),” he said.

Malaysia’s population of 25 million is 60 percent ethnic Malays, with Chinese and Indians the minority races.

—AFP