Gist of Anwar's visit to US

 

The following is the gist of Anwar Ibrahim's visit to the United States to attend the 78th United Nations General Assembly (Unga), his debut appearance as the prime minister of Malaysia.

National Statement

When delivering the National Statement during the General Debate on Sept 22, Anwar expressed his concern about the global conflicts, such as in Palestine, Ukraine, Afghanistan and Myanmar.

He also touched on issues related to the climate crisis, sustainable development goals, Islamophobia and Malaysia Madani.

Bilateral meetings

The prime minister held meetings with his counterparts from Türkiye, Iran, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Iraq.

Apart from that, he also met with United States President Joe Biden's climate envoy, John Kerry, and Extractive Industries Transparency Institute (EITI) chairman Helen Clark.

i. Türkiye

- Efforts to address the rising trend of Islamophobia.

- Increasing need for bilateral cooperation in investment and trade, including involving Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad to expand the terminal at the Istanbul Sabiha Gokcen International Airport.

- Defence ecosystem cooperation between the two countries.

ii. Iran

- Strengthen bilateral relations with Iran through cooperation in economy, education, food security, science and technology as well as exploring the potential for new forms of cooperation.

- Reaffirmed commitment to hold a Joint Commission Meeting and a Joint Economic Commission Meeting.

iii. Sri Lanka

- Cooperation in trade and investment, education, tourism and culture.

iv. Thailand

- Discussed various issues involving national borders, the peace process in Southern Thailand and regional matters of mutual interest.

v. Iraq

- To hold the 9th Joint Commission Meeting between Malaysia and Iraq on the economy, education, air links and tourism, which has been delayed for a long time.

- Informed Malaysia’s decision to reopen the Malaysian Embassy in Baghdad.

vi. John Kerry

- Discussed issues relating to environment, renewable energy and climate change.

vii. Helen Clark

- Discussed the importance of implementing good governance, transparency and accountability in mining and quarrying industries, and exchanged views on issues of mutual interest.

Round Table Meetings with Fortune 500 companies

Held meetings with 15 US Fortune 500 companies including AirBnB, Amazon, AWS, Boeing, ConocoPhillips and Kimberly-Clark.

Shared the Madani Economy framework, supported by the New Industrial Masterplan 2030, the National Energy Transition Roadmap and the 12th Malaysia Plan Mid-Term Review, which outlines the direction towards achieving the national development goals.

Met with the US-Asean Business Council and the United States Chamber of Commerce as a medium between the government and the business community to ensure the successful implementation of government initiatives that would ultimately benefit the people.

Invest Malaysia New York

Held a meeting with more than 200 delegates at Invest Malaysia New York jointly organised by Bursa Malaysia, Bank of America, CIMB, HSBC, Maybank and Standard Chartered.

Attracted the interest of equity and bond capital market investors with assets value under management of nearly US$40 trillion.

Highlighted the Madani Economic Framework which is supported by the New Industrial Master Plan 2030, the National Energy Transition Roadmap and the 12th Malaysia Plan Mid-Term Review.

The session was also attended by the investment, trade and industry minister, the Bank Negara Malaysia governor, the Bursa Malaysia chairperson and chief executive officer, and the Securities Commission Malaysia chairperson.

Council on Foreign Relations (CFR)

Attending a discussion session with the CFR, listening and sharing national policies and policies related to international relations, the global stage and geopolitics with the CFR members.

Other programmes

The prime minister, on the invitation of the New York Islamic Cultural Centre, delivered the Friday sermon on Sept 22 and hosted a dinner for more than 800 Malaysian diaspora in New York.

Apart from that, he was also interviewed by CNN and Bloomberg.

Conclusion

The prime minister's visit to New York to attend the 78th Session of the Unga highlighted the country's position and provided an opportunity to share the country's policies and aspirations related to international relations.

The meetings with his counterparts provided Anwar the opportunity to share experiences and exchange views on global issues of common interest.

- Bernama