Malaysia rolls out red carpet for PM Imran on first official visit

KUALA LUMPUR – Prime Minister Imran Khan on Tuesday reached Kuala Lumpur on a two-day official visit of Malaysia, Radio Pakistan reported.

The Malaysian authorities rolled out the red carpet for the Pakistani premier as he arrived in the Malaysian capital with Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Finance Minister Asad Umar, Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry and Adviser on Commerce Abdul Razak Dawood.

The special aircraft ferrying the Prime Minister from Karachi landed at the KL International Airport (KLIA) at 11.35pm.

They were received by Deputy Minister-in-the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Dr Md. Farid Md. Rafik at the Bunga Raya Complex, KLIA.

Also present was Deputy Foreign Minister Senator Datuk Marzuki Yahya and Pakistan’s High Commissioner to Malaysia, Muhammed Nafees Zakaria.

The Foreign Ministry (Wisma Putra), in a statement, said the visit was at the invitation of Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

This is Imran Khan’s first official visit to Malaysia since assuming office in August.

وزیر اعظم عمران خان کی وفد کے ہمراہ کوالا لمپور، ملائيشيا آمد.

Warm welcome was given to the Prime Minister of Pakistan by the Malaysian government. #PMIKVisitsMalaysia 🇵🇰🇲🇾 pic.twitter.com/8qQvwlcm76

— Prime Minister's Office (@PakPMO) November 20, 2018

The prime minister and his Malaysian counterpart Dr Mahathir are expected to hold a one-on-one meeting to review the existing bilateral relations and cooperation as well as identify new areas for future collaboration.

According to Wisma Putra, Imran Khan would be accorded a welcoming ceremony before attending a restricted meeting with Dr Mahathir at the prime minister's office, followed by a delegation meeting.

Following their bilateral meeting, Dr Mahathir and Imran Khan will also witness the signing of an agreement by the governments of Malaysia and Pakistan at the Prime Minister’s Office on the partial abolition of visa for travel between the two countries.

Imran Khan is also scheduled to visit the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission headquarters.

On October 18, PM Khan and Malaysian PM Mahathir had held a telephonic conversation, in which the former had emphasised Pakistan's "close and cordial" relations with Malaysia.

PM Khan, highlighting the "need of high-level bilateral exchanges" between the two countries, had said that Pakistan and Malaysia should collaborate at an "operational level" so that they could benefit from each other's expertise.

In 2017, the total bilateral trade between the two countries stood at RM5.76 billion, an increase of 3.5 per cent compared to 2016. Pakistan is Malaysia’s third largest trading partner among South Asian countries.