Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim (left) meeting Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong in January. They will meet again on Oct 30. - PHOTO: ST FILE
SINGAPORE: Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim will visit Singapore from Sunday for a two-day retreat, where leaders of both countries will discuss bilateral issues and explore new areas of cooperation.
He will be here for the 10th Singapore-Malaysia Leaders’ Retreat, at the invitation of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.
The retreat, a key annual platform for the two leaders to meet and discuss bilateral issues, is the first one to be held since the Covid-19 pandemic hit.
It will be an opportunity for both countries to take stock of growing cooperation, said Singapore’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) in a statement on Sunday.
The last retreat was held in Putrajaya in April 2019.
Datuk Seri Anwar, who is also Finance Minister, will call on President Tharman Shanmugaratnam on Monday.
This will be their first meeting since Tharman was sworn in as Singapore’s ninth president on Sept 14.
Anwar will also meet PM Lee on Monday.
The two prime ministers and their delegations will then meet for bilateral discussions and witness the signing of agreements on key areas of cooperation, said MFA.
Anwar will be accompanied by a high-level delegation including six members of his Cabinet: Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Zambry Kadir; Transport Minister Anthony Loke; Investment, Trade and Industry Minister Tengku Zafrul Tengku Aziz; Natural Resources, Environment and Climate Change Minister Nik Nazmi; Home Affairs Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution; and Entrepreneur Development and Cooperatives Minister Datuk Ewon Benedick.
Other delegates accompanying him are Sarawak Premier Tan Sri Abang Zohari Openg, Johor Chief Minister Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi and Attorney-General Datuk Ahmad Terrirudin Mohd Salleh.
It will be Anwar’s third visit to Singapore since he took office in November 2022.
His first official visit was in January 2023, and he was here again in September for the Milken Institute Asia Summit 2023.
The Singapore delegation for this upcoming visit includes Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Lawrence Wong; Senior Minister Teo Chee Hean; Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan; Home Affairs and Law Minister K. Shanmugam; Trade and Industry Minister Gan Kim Yong; Social and Family Development Minister Masagos Zulkifli; National Development Minister Desmond Lee; Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office Maliki Osman; Acting Transport Minister Chee Hong Tat; Senior Minister of State for Sustainability and the Environment and Manpower Koh Poh Koon; and Attorney-General Lucien Wong.
At the last leaders’ retreat in 2019, PM Lee had met then Malaysian Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and discussed issues such as maritime boundaries, water supply, and rapid transit system and connectivity projects. - The Straits Times/ANN
