• Shehbaz-Ibrahim meetings yield promise of greater Asean role for Islamabad
• Leaders stress need to shed dependency on ‘one country, one system’
• Several accords signed; Kuala Lumpur offers more collaboration in defence, cybersecurity, tourism
PUTRAJAYA: The leaders of Pakistan and Malaysia resolved on Monday to reignite bilateral cooperation and move towards a more aggressive and forward-looking policy, including the possibility of collaboration under the umbrella of the Asean economic bloc.
The resolve came during the course of several meetings between Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and his Malaysian counterpart Anwar Ibrahim. The former is currently on a three-day official visit to Malaysia, where he spent a productive Monday, snapping up six accords and several trade and bilateral agreements.
His host, Malaysian PM Ibrahim, pointed out that relations between their countries, though long-standing, had become “somewhat stagnated” and need a renewed, practical approach anchored in clear policies, The Star Malaysia reported.
Speaking at the Pakistan-Malaysia Business and Investment Conference, he said the two countries should “work on existing partners, but to open up new avenues, and Pakistan is one of the countries that we look forward to [working with]”.
Anwar noted that Malaysia and Pakistan share deep cultural, educational and intellectual connections, but stressed that modern cooperation must also be grounded in economic pragmatism.
“We have traditional relations in trade and partnership. We have realised that dependency on one country, one system, will be futile. We need, therefore, to expand trade relations. That is why we will work for a strong, formidable Asean in terms of trade, in terms of investments,” The Star Malaysia quoted PM Ibrahim as saying.
According to the Associated Press of Pakistan, PM Shehbaz congratulated his Malaysian counterpart on Malaysia becoming the chair of Asean, and thanked PM Ibrahim for reaffirming Malaysia’s support for Pakistan’s bid to become a Full Dialogue Partner of Asean.
Both leaders also agreed to remain in close consultation to follow up on the important decisions taken to enhance bilateral cooperation between both sides, as well as to keep each other informed of their perspectives on major international affairs.
Both leaders also held detailed discussions on major regional and international developments, including the situation in the Middle East.
The Malaysian prime minister also praised Pakistan’s constructive role in the ongoing peace efforts in Palestine, including US President Donald Trump’s recent initiative for Gaza.
Meanwhile, both countries also agreed to further strengthen cooperation in defence, aviation, public health and cybersecurity as part of ongoing efforts to deepen bilateral ties.
In a joint statement issued following their bilateral meeting, both prime ministers expressed satisfaction with the strong and ongoing defence collaboration under the Joint Committee on Defence Cooperation (JCDC) established in 1997, The Star Malaysia reported.
“Cooperation between the two countries has been tremendously strengthened through high-level visits, regular bilateral meetings at ministerial and military levels, military-to-military engagements and defence industry linkages.
