Pakistani, Malaysian premiers discuss bilateral, regional issues

Pakistani and Malaysian prime ministers on Thursday discussed bilateral and regional issues and agreed to enhance bilateral cooperation between the two countries.

Shehbaz Sharif received Anwar Ibrahim, who is on a three-day trip to Pakistan until Friday.

Sharif and Anwar discussed a wide range of bilateral, regional, and international issues of "mutual interest" including those being faced by the Muslim Ummah, said a statement by the Pakistani premier's office.

The two leaders agreed on "mechanisms to enhance bilateral cooperation with a view to achieving concrete results," it said.

"In setting the tone and future direction of bilateral relations between the two countries, the two leaders stressed the importance of dialogue and exchanges of visits at all levels and underlined the importance of the joint ministerial commission, bilateral consultations, and other mechanisms to enhance engagement at all levels," the statement added.

Anwar welcomed Pakistan's continued engagement with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and expressed support for further engagement between Islamabad and the Southeast Asian bloc.

Malaysia will assume the chair of the ASEAN next year.

On Wednesday, Anwar along with a high-level delegation arrived in the capital Islamabad, on his maiden trip since taking office in November 2022.

Kuala Lumpur and Islamabad shared a bilateral trade volume of $1.5 billion in 2023-24 amid an increase in mutual trade over the past six years.

Pakistan's exports to Malaysia were $461.96 million in 2023, while Malaysian exports to Islamabad were $961.44 million during the same period.

Malaysia mainly exports palm oil, petroleum gas, and margarine to Pakistan, whereas Islamabad exports rice, corn, textiles, and vegetable products to Kuala Lumpur.

The two sides have also signed a Free Trade Agreement aside from various other memorandums of understanding and agreements across diverse domains.