Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on Thursday rejected the notion that China’s dominance is to be feared, calling China a “true friend” at the end of Premier Li Qiang’s visit to mark 50 years of diplomatic ties between their countries.

While the leaders raised some contentious bilateral issues, Anwar said they discussed them as “equal partners, as trusted friends”. He didn’t give details but likely referred to the prickly issue of overlapping territorial claims in the South China Sea.