Singapore’s Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan met political and corporate leaders in Malaysia on May 17 – the first day of his three-day visit to the country aimed at renewing and strengthening bilateral ties.
He met Terengganu Menteri Besar Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar, secretary-general of the opposition Democratic Action Party (DAP) Anthony Loke, Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) lawmaker Nurul Izzah Anwar, and chairman of mobile service provider Maxis, Mokhzani Mahathir.
“Good catch up with old friends in KL today. We had good discussions on political and economic developments,” Dr Balakrishnan wrote on his Facebook page.
“Our leaders have worked hard to reopen our borders. It was heartening to travel here alongside Singaporeans heading for holidays and Malaysians returning home. Wonderful to see KL bustling again!” he added.
Dr Balakrishnan said he had a good conversation with Datuk Seri Ahmad Samsuri about developments in Terengganu over lunch, and had also invited the Parti Islam SeMalaysia vice-president to visit Singapore.
Later, he met DAP’s Loke for dinner. “We had a good discussion on bilateral relations and developments in both our countries,” he wrote.
He also met PKR’s Nurul Izzah and said it was “always a pleasure to meet and exchange views on developments in the region”.
On his meeting with Tan Sri Mokhzani, he said they caught up “on recent trends facing Malaysia’s corporate sector these few years”.
During the visit, Dr Balakrishnan is also set to meet Senior Minister and Defence Minister Hishammuddin Hussein and Foreign Minister Saifuddin Abdullah, Singapore’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement on Monday.
Dr Balakrishnan will also have an audience with Sultan Nazrin Shah, the deputy king of Malaysia and the Sultan of Perak.
THE STRAITS TIMES (SINGAPORE)/ASIA NEWS NETWORK
