A Geopolitik column by Malai Hassan Othman
For many Bruneians, the image from Kazan was more than just another diplomatic photograph.
There was His Majesty the Sultan of Brunei, seated face to face with President Vladimir Putin of Russia.
Beside His Majesty was His Royal Highness Prince ‘Abdul Mateen, Brunei’s newly appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs.
To the outside world, it may have looked like another formal meeting between two leaders.
But to us, as Bruneians, the image carried a deeper meaning.
Brunei is a small country. We do not have Indonesia's population, Singapore's economic weight, or the military reach of the great powers.
But small does not mean insignificant.
That image reminded us that Brunei still has a seat at the table. It has a voice. It has sovereignty. It has relationships. And in a world where big powers are pulling in different directions, the ability to sit, speak and be heard is not a small thing.
That is why the Kazan meeting matters.
It was not merely about protocol. It was not only about courtesy. And it should not be read too narrowly as Brunei moving closer to Russia or choosing one side over another.
That would miss the larger point.
Brunei was present.
For a small nation, presence matters. We cannot afford to disappear from important conversations while larger powers reshape trade, energy, security and diplomacy around us.
Brunei and Russia are marking 35 years of diplomatic relations this year, a relationship formally established on 1 October 1991. Over the years, cooperation has developed in education, defence, security, culture, trade, energy and people-to-people exchanges, supported by mechanisms such as bilateral consultations, a Joint Working Group and regular Navy Staff Talks.
These may sound like official phrases. But put simply, they mean Brunei is keeping communication channels open with a major power.
In a world where misunderstanding can quickly become tension, and tension can quickly become conflict, small nations need channels. They need working relations. They need the ability to speak directly with major powers, even when the global mood is difficult.
This is not a weakness.
This is survival with dignity.
The presence of His Royal Highness Prince ‘Abdul Mateen as Minister of Foreign Affairs also gives the meeting added institutional weight.
It was not just a royal presence. It was also a foreign policy moment.
His Royal Highness’s role signals both continuity and preparation. It places Brunei’s next generation of leadership directly within the practice of diplomacy, where relationships are built slowly, files are followed through carefully, and national positions must be defended with discipline. Foreign policy is not only about today’s handshake. It is also about tomorrow’s relationships and the machinery needed to sustain them.
For Brunei, this matters.
We live in a region where every major power wants influence. China is rising. The United States remains deeply engaged. Russia is looking more seriously towards Asia. India is expanding its reach. Japan, Korea, Australia and the European Union remain important partners.
Where does a small country like Brunei stand in all this?
The answer is not to shout.
The answer is to be steady.
Brunei must know its size, but also know its worth.
This is where ASEAN becomes important.
Alone, Brunei is small. Within ASEAN, Brunei sits as part of a regional family that all major powers must take seriously.
ASEAN Centrality may sound like diplomatic language, but the meaning is simple. Southeast Asia should not become a playground for big-power rivalry. The region should not be forced into simple choices of “with us” or “against us”.
For Brunei, ASEAN gives our voice a wider reach.
That is why His Majesty’s appreciation of Russia’s support for ASEAN Centrality was important. It showed that Brunei’s message was not only bilateral. It was also regional.
Brunei was saying, in effect, that Southeast Asia must remain in the driver’s seat of its own region.
The meeting also touched on practical possibilities, and this is where diplomacy becomes more than ceremony.
His Majesty welcomed Russian businesses to explore investment opportunities in Brunei, including downstream oil and gas, food, services, tourism and ICT. Russia has also pointed to energy, tourism and humanitarian exchanges as areas with potential, supported by existing people-to-people links and visa-free travel arrangements.
The invitation is genuine. Brunei needs capital partners, and its diversification agenda is real. But investment talk is not neutral. It carries weight, and it sends signals.
Brunei should move with deliberation. Exploration is not the same as commitment. But it is not without consequence either, especially at a time when Russia’s international position remains deeply contested, and many countries are watching how others engage with Moscow.
The areas worth pursuing are those where cooperation is practical, grounded and unlikely to complicate Brunei’s broader relationships. The art is in choosing carefully and then following through with the same care.
That is why the distinction must be made clearly: engagement does not mean endorsement.
Talking does not mean agreeing with everything.
Cooperation does not mean surrendering judgment.
This is the line small nations must learn to walk.
His Majesty’s remarks on the Middle East gave the meeting a dimension that went well beyond trade or bilateral ties.
He expressed deep concern over Palestine and Gaza. He reiterated support for an independent State of Palestine based on the two-State solution and pre-1967 borders. He called for an immediate cessation of hostilities and unimpeded humanitarian access.
His Majesty also spoke on Iran, opposing the use of force and calling for diplomacy and dialogue. He referred to the Strait of Hormuz — a place far from Brunei on the map, but close to the world’s economic nerves.
Why should Bruneians care about the Strait of Hormuz?
Because when that region burns, the world feels the heat. Oil prices move. Shipping routes become nervous. Trade becomes uncertain. Small economies feel the ripple.
So when His Majesty raised Palestine, Iran and the Strait of Hormuz, Brunei was not speaking as a distant observer. Brunei was speaking as a small Muslim-majority nation, an energy economy, an ASEAN member, and a country that understands the cost of instability.
This is why diplomacy matters.
Some may ask: why meet Russia?
Perhaps the better question is: how can a small country afford not to talk to major powers?
Talking is not a weakness. It is not surrender. It is not taking sides.
It is one way small nations prevent silence from being mistaken for irrelevance.
But there must always be principles.
Brunei’s foreign policy cannot be reduced to friendship with everyone and silence on everything. That would be too easy. True diplomacy must carry both courtesy and conviction, especially when the issues are uncomfortable.
It must be able to shake hands and still speak about peace.
It must be able to discuss trade and still speak about Gaza.
It must be able to welcome cooperation and still stand by the rules-based international order.
That is the balance Brunei must maintain.
Kazan was not only about Brunei and Russia.
It was about a small nation showing up in a divided world — not with arrogance, but with a clear sense of where it stands and what it needs.
His Majesty raised Palestine, Iran and the Strait of Hormuz not as diplomatic courtesy, but as a reminder that Brunei’s interests are not confined to its own borders. When energy routes are threatened, Brunei feels it. When the Muslim world is in pain, Brunei speaks. When international rules are strained, Brunei has reason to defend them. That is not sentimentality. That is a small nation defining its own terms of engagement before others define them for it.
The real test of Kazan is not the meeting itself.
It is what Brunei does in the months that follow.
Whether the investment conversations move forward with the discipline they require. Whether the channels opened with Russia are used to advance Brunei’s interests, or simply to fill a calendar. Whether the principles His Majesty articulated in that room — on Palestine, on dialogue, on restraint and on the rules-based international order — are carried forward consistently, including when they are inconvenient.
A seat at the table is earned once.
Credibility at that table is earned repeatedly.
Brunei sat down in Kazan.
What it does next is the column that has not yet been written.
Malai Hassan Othman writes the Geopolitik column on strategic affairs through a Brunei lens.
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