KUALA LUMPUR, May 10 — At the 42nd Asean Summit in Labuan Bajo, Indonesia today Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim held discussions with four Asean leaders on bilateral ties and cooperation.
Anwar in a statement on his Facebook page said he paid a courtesy call on the Sultan of Brunei Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah and Pengiran Muda 'Abdul Mateen Bolkiah and expressed his wish to see Bandar Seri Begawan's involvement in the Annual Leaders' Consultation (ALC) this year where Putrajaya is the host.
"Apart from that, the discussion is also focused on investment, landmarking, cooperation in culture and education for the benefit of both countries," he said.
Anwar also held a meeting with the Prime Minister of Vietnam, Pham Minh Chinh and expressed Malaysia's welcome to receive their delegation to Putrajaya in conjunction with the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries.
The discussion also touched on the investment apart from hoping that the issue of Vietnamese fishermen's encroachment in Malaysian waters could be dealt with as firmly as possible.
"In this summit as well, I had a bilateral meeting with my counterparts from Laos, Sonexay Siphandone where we agreed to cooperate more in the fields of banking, training programmes for officers and diplomats besides education and the agricultural industry.
"After that, I also held a bilateral meeting with my counterpart from Timor Leste, Taur Matan Ruak where I reiterated my full support regarding the republic's application to join the Asean family," he said.
Anwar said the discussion with the Prime Minister of Timor Leste also touched on the need to increase opportunities for cooperation in investment, trade, agriculture and food manufacturing which demand togetherness and continued commitment from both countries.
The Prime Minister and other Asean leaders are attending the two-day summit starting today, to discuss several issues of common interest to the regional grouping.
A total of eight heads of government from the 10 Asean member countries participated in the summit except for Myanmar, which was not invited, and Thailand, which is facing a general election on May 14. — Bernama
