PUTRAJAYA: Malaysia and Bangladesh will work together to resolve the plight of Rohingya refugees, including engaging Myanmar through Asean mechanisms, says Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
The effort will be pursued through the offices of both countries' foreign ministers, he added.
"Through our common effort, we will work to resolve the predicament of Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh and also here.
"(We will) engage through Asean mechanisms with the Myanmar authorities to resolve part of the issue," he told a joint press conference here on Monday (June 22).
Anwar had earlier held bilateral talks with visiting Bangladesh Prime Minister Tarique Rahman, who chose Malaysia for his first official visit since taking office in February.
He noted that Malaysia was among the earliest countries to recognise Bangladesh, and among the first to congratulate Tarique after the recent elections.
On global issues, Anwar said the two countries stood together on Palestine and in condemning the atrocities in Gaza.
"On the crimes and atrocities inflicted in Gaza by the Zionist Israel regime, (and) all the support for lasting peace in the Gulf and Iran, we are together," he said.
ALSO READ: Anwar accords official welcome to Bangladesh PM Tariqu
Anwar said he had known Tarique's family for years, recalling their first meeting when he was a youth leader and later as deputy prime minister.
He praised the Bangladeshi leader for enduring hardship and staying consistent in his ideals.
"(He) endured hardships and struggled to remain consistent in his ideals, in defending freedom and progress for the people of his country whom he deeply loved," Anwar said.
He described Tarique as part of an enlarged family.
"We consider you part of the enlarged family... I look forward to strengthening this bond and brotherly relations between us," he said.
Tarique, who arrived with his spouse Dr Zubaida Rahman in KLIA 1 on Sunday (June 21), is on a two-day official visit to Malaysia.
