ANKARA: Turkiye hopes that the upgrading of its ties with Malaysia to comprehensive strategic partnership will further strengthen economic and commercial cooperation, including on vaccine development.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said among the immediate plans was for the republic, which became the ninth country in the world that is capable of producing its own Covid-19 vaccine, to launch its locally produced vaccine, Turkovac, in Malaysia.
“We want to transfer vaccine technology and to carry out vaccine development studies together,” he said at a joint press conference with Malaysian Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob, who is in the country on a four-day official visit.
During the leaders’ meeting held at the Presidential Complex in the capital, Erdogan said they discussed cooperation in various fields such as economy, investment, trade, defence industry, technology, health and communication.
“On this occasion, we once again confirmed our determination to move forward with our cooperation, which is getting stronger with each passing day.
“Upon the proposal of the prime minister, we decided to upgrade the relations between our countries from a strategic partnership to a comprehensive strategic partnership,” he said.
Erdogan said Malaysia-Turkiye relations have reached an exceptional level, with trade volume exceeding US$3.5 billion, with Malaysia becoming the republic’s largest commercial stakeholder in Southeast Asia.
He said the trade volume increased by 50% last year despite the Covid-19 pandemic, and the figures for the first six months of 2022 also showed a further increase in line with the target of US$5 billion by 2024.
The president said he believed that expanding the free trade agreement to include services, investments and electronic commerce would further strengthen the economic and commercial ties between the two countries, as well as make the trading of goods and services more balanced.
The two leaders also discussed the possibility of new cooperation models and investment projects, such as in food security, energy and environment.
“I would like to emphasise that we have always felt the support of Malaysia on our side,” he said, adding that he and Ismail also discussed the Rohingya and Islamophobia issues.
Erdogan said both countries would strengthen their solidarity in platforms such as the United Nations, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation and D8. - FMT
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