PUTRAJAYA: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and his Vietnamese counterpart Pham Minh Chinh have witnessed the exchange of three documents between Malaysia and Vietnam, aimed at strengthening cooperation in energy, education and regional integration.
The exchange ceremony, held at the Perdana Putra Complex here on Sunday (May 25), followed a bilateral meeting between the two leaders, in conjunction with Chinh's official visit to Malaysia.
The first document exchanged was a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on collaboration between Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) and Vietnam Electricity (EVN), focusing on the Asean Power Grid and strategic capability building.
TNB was represented by its president and chief executive officer (CEO) Datuk Megat Jalaluddin Megat Hassan, while EVN was represented by its president and CEO, Nguyen Anh Tuan.
The second document was a letter of intent on cooperation between Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) and Vietnam National University Ho Chi Minh City.
UKM was represented by acting vice-chancellor Prof Dr Abdul Halim Abdul Gapor, while Vietnam National University Ho Chi Minh City was represented by its vice-chancellor, Associate Prof Nguyen Minh Tam.
In a third exchange, UKM's Institute of Malaysian and International Studies director Prof Sufian Jusoh represented the university in a letter of intent with Vietnam National University, Hanoi.
The agreement focuses on strategic partnership and Asean regional integration between Malaysia and Vietnam.
Vietnam National University, Hanoi vice-president, Associate Prof Dr Pham Bao Son, represented Vietnam in the exchange.
Vietnam ranks as Malaysia's 11th largest trading partner globally and fourth largest among Asean member states. Bilateral trade reached RM83.11bil, comprising RM53.86bill in exports from Malaysia and RM29.25bil in imports from Vietnam.
Malaysian companies have implemented more than 700 projects in Vietnam, with cumulative investments valued at over US$13bil (RM55bil). – Bernama
