KUALA LUMPUR: Foreign Minister Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah (pix) is making a three-day working visit to Bangladesh from today, his first trip to the country since assuming the post last year.
In a statement, the Foreign Ministry said Saifuddin was scheduled to meet his counterpart Dr A.K. Abdul Momen, with both sides expected to discuss wide-ranging bilateral issues as well as regional and international matters of mutual interest.
Saifuddin is also scheduled to visit the Malaysian field hospital and several Rohingya refugee camps in Cox’s Bazar in the southeast coast of Bangladesh.
“This visit will provide an opportunity to strengthen the existing warm and friendly relations between both countries and further boost bilateral cooperation as well as reaffirm Malaysia’s continued support to the government of Bangladesh in providing humanitarian assistance to the Rohingya refugees,“ the statement said.
It noted that Malaysia and Bangladesh had substantial trade and investment ties with the 2018 two-way trade valued at US$2.37 billion (RM10 billion), a significant increase of 35.4% from US$1.75 billion (RM7 billion) in 2017.
From January to April 2019, trade increased by 2.7% to US$793.1 million (RM3.27 billion) compared to US$771.5 million (RM3.19 billion) over the same period in 2018. Bangladesh is Malaysia’s second largest trading partner among South Asian countries.
