PUTRAJAYA: Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Dr. Zambry Abd. Kadir has described his working visit to Australia from May 4 to 6 as successful in elevating the bilateral relations between the two countries besides solving mutual issues under the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP) framework.
Zambry who led Malaysia’s delegation to the 5th Malaysia-Australia Annual Foreign Ministers’ Meeting (AFMM) held in Adelaide in which Australia was the host said, the visit had also opened opportunities via new cooperation via the modernization of the Malaysia-Australia Free Trade Agreement (MAFTA).
“The meeting had also strengthened shared commitments towards maintaining stability and peace in the Indo-Pacific region without any threats from any party,” Zambry said in a statement today.
While in Adelaide, Zambry said he had made a courtesy visit to the 47th South Australia Premier, Peter Malinauskas MP, and exchanged opinions on various bilateral issues of mutual interests and efforts to strengthen the relationship of people to people between Malaysia and South Australia.
Zambry also highlighted the meeting was meaningful as the “Sister City” between Georgetown in Penang and Adelaide in South Australia is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year.
AFMM is a two-way mechanism under the Joint Declaration for Strategic Partnership (JDSP) between Malaysia and Australia which was established in 2015.
Since the establishment of JDSP, four meetings had been held namely in March 2017 in Putrajaya, November 2019 (Sydney), December 2020 (Kuala Lumpur), and November 2021 also in Kuala Lumpur.
According to Zambry, the meeting had discussed important issues including the economy, science and technology, education, defense, and security in the region.
Australia remains Malaysia’s largest and strategic trading partner, export destination, and source of import in the Oceania region. In 2022 the total trade value increased by 55.4% to RM88.65 billion compared to RM57.04 billion in 2021. –Malaysia World News
