The proverbial dragon and the perils of provocation: Why peace must precede progress in the age of AI

Where others beat the drums of war, the Dragon paces itself — not because it is afraid, but because it is aware. Aware that true leadership does not come from domination, but from discipline. As artificial intelligence, big data, automation, and algorithmic economies redefine global power, the world must heed the deeper meaning of the Dragon: strength without boast, power without provocation.

The Dragon of China is not the fire-breathing beast of Western lore — it is an emblem of cosmic harmony, strategic patience, and cultural continuity. In the Chinese worldview, dragons do not conquer — they balance. They do not agitate — they absorb. And when they move, it is deliberate, calibrated, and wise.

Today’s China reflects that ethos. It has emerged as a technological giant, a manufacturing hub, a diplomatic force. Yet it continues to propose peace-building frameworks — the Belt and Road Initiative, the Global Development Initiative, the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea. These are not masks for aggression, but shields against miscalculation.

The Dragon remembers being torn apart by colonial powers. That history does not push it toward vengeance, but toward vigilance. It builds not to intimidate, but to insulate its people from future humiliation.

Thus, when China parades, it is not a roar — it is a reminder.

By contrast, the Bald Eagle — long a symbol of American assertiveness — now flails in unpredictable arcs. Under Donald Trump, U.S. foreign policy has become less about alliances and more about theatrics. From launching tariffs to missile strikes, Trump’s America acts not from strategy, but from spectacle.

Take the recent attack on Iranian nuclear sites. Billed as “monumental,” it instead created murkiness — without third-party verification, without clarity on damage, and without a roadmap forward. It wasn’t a military operation; it was a geopolitical teaser trailer. The audience? Beijing.

Trump tests China not because he expects war — but because he craves a reaction. When none comes, he rewrites the scene. A tariff here, a naval provocation there, a Taiwan comment somewhere. It is a strategy of constant climax — but no closure.

Yet the proverbial Dragon does not take the bait. Because provocation is not policy. And impulse is not power.

In the face of such turmoil, one voice has emerged with moral clarity: that of Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim. Responding to the latest Middle East crisis, he declared:

> “If the aim is peace, then the world must also condemn Israel’s provocations, not only Iran’s retaliation.”

This was not diplomacy as usual. It was a civilizational reminder — that justice cannot be selective, and that restraint is not weakness. Under Anwar’s leadership, Malaysia is reclaiming its place as a strategic bridge between East and West, and as Chair of ASEAN in 2025, its responsibility is even greater.

The South China Sea is not a theatre for proxy wars.

The Taiwan Strait is not a global referendum.

The Indo-Pacific must not be militarized for someone else’s misadventures.

As the Dragon offers calm, ASEAN must offer consensus. And as the Eagle disrupts, ASEAN must defuse.

We are standing at the edge of a technological renaissance — powered by AI, quantum computing, augmented reality, automated systems, and data economies. But these innovations cannot thrive in climates of chaos.

You cannot upload peace through an app. You cannot automate trust.

What is the value of a billion-dollar AI system if cities are burning and trade routes collapsing? What good are algorithms when civilizations are dismantled by drone strikes?

Peace is not a luxury. It is the motherboard of modernity. The proverbial Dragon understands this. It builds patiently — railways, fiber-optics, digital corridors — because it knows that the next century belongs to cooperation, not coercion.

The global order is not a stage for one actor’s theatrics. It is a concert of nations. And in that concert, the Dragon need not sing — it needs only to hold the rhythm.

The proverbial Dragon remains still not because it is timid, but because it has seen enough to know that force is not the first language of diplomacy.

Malaysia and ASEAN must help the world understand this: peace is power. Restraint is leadership. Dignity is strength.

Let us not be pawns in the Eagle’s tired game.

Let us learn from the Dragon, and become sovereign architects of a more stable, sensible, and synchronised world.