Obama's Visit Underlines Strong Economic Relations, Says Foreign Minister

PUTRAJAYA, April 25 (Bernama) -- The historic visit by US President Barack Obama underlines the strong economic relations that form the bedrock of Malaysia-United States bilateral ties, says Foreign Minister Anifah Aman. He said the United States remained one of Malaysia's biggest trading partner and a leading source of foreign direct investment in the country. "There is considerable potential to boost economic relations to increase linkages in new growth areas, especially in emerging and high technology sectors," he told a media briefing here Friday ahead of Obama's three-day visit to Kuala Lumpur beginning Saturday. Anifah added that both countries were exploring ways to promote opportunities for trade and employment at the bilateral, as well as, multilateral levels. As for economic opportunities, Anifah said another key theme of the visit would be entrepreneurship and economic empowerment, a sector that was increasingly driven by the country's youths. "This is a follow-up to the 4th Global Entrepreneurship Summit which Malaysia hosted in October 2013. "The visit will witness the fruition of the Malaysian Global Innovation and Creativity Centre (MaGIC) which was announced by Prime Minister Najib Razak during the summit," he said. Both Najib and Obama would jointly launch MaGIC in Cyberjaya on Sunday. Anifah said the presence of both leaders at the launching would reinforce Malaysia and the United State’s shared aim to promote entrepreneurial growth and opportunities to propel greater economic development. -- BERNAMA