You may well be an expert on cultural relations but this is not...

You may well be an expert on cultural relations but this is not a cultural issue, it's a legal one. Changing the conditions for license renewal not only demonstrates a lack of character, it's a breach of a contract. I see no reason Lynas should wait until February 15th or September 2nd to learn if Malaysia is a nation of laws that honors its agreements. You can't do business in a country that changes the rules based on personal bias. Lynas needs to know where it stands and it has the right to know that now. As for a diplomatic disaster, I submit Malaysia beat Lynas to that one !