Malaysia, Australia Agree To Enhance Cooperation In Counter Terrorism

PUTRAJAYA (Malaysia), March 16 (Bernama) -- Malaysia and Australia have agreed to enhance the defence and security cooperation in counter terrorism to address mutual concerns. These were among the issues deliberated by Malaysia's Foreign Minister Anifah Aman and his Australian counterpart, Julie Bishop, at the annual Foreign Ministers' Meeting under the Malaysia-Australia Strategic Partnership framework at Wisma Putra (Malaysia's Foreign Ministry) here Wednesday. Anifah and Bishop, who is in Malaysia for a two-day working visit to attend the meeting, also discussed the progress of the ongoing bilateral cooperation and issues of common interests between Malaysia and Australia. Wisma Putra in a statement on the outcome of the meeting said Malaysia and Australia also touched on the incident of MH370 and MH17 and the way forward in addressing the issue. The statement also said Anifah had reiterated Malaysia's commitment to Malaysia-Australia Strategic Partnership, which was announced by Prime Minister Najib Razak and Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull on the sidelines of the 27th ASEAN Summit in Kuala Lumpur on Nov 22, 2015. During the meeting, both leaders also shared their views on the current global situation, including on major power interaction in the region, development in the Korean peninsula and the South China Sea issue. According to the statement, Malaysia and Australia had a longstanding defence relations since the Malayan Campaign in World War II and the ties continued to develop under the auspices of the Five Power Defence Arrangements (FPDA) and the Malaysia-Australia Joint Defence Programme. On education cooperation, the statement said Bishop mentioned that 300,000 Malaysians had graduated from Australian universities, while around 800 Australian students had been approved to study in Malaysia under the New Colombo Plan for 2015-2017. "Australia has also offered diplomatic training courses for Malaysian diplomatic officials in Australia to enhance the strategic engagement between both countries," it added. The Wisma Putra statement stated that both leaders also discussed the trade and investment cooperation which benefited both countries under the Malaysia-Australia Free Trade Agreement (MAFTA), which was signed on May 22, 2012. On Malaysia-Australia ties, Wisma Putra said the year 2017 marked the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries. "The 60-year milestone is a testament of the strong bond between both countries and the visit by Bishop served as a demonstration of the unwavering commitment of both sides to propel the bilateral relations to higher level," it said. In commemoration of the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations, Australia had agreed to participate in the exhibition organised by Wisma Putra, which will be held at the National Museum from April 20 to July 20, 2017. Australia also agreed to assist on provision of an international relations expert for a round-table discussion and public lecture in Malaysia in conjunction with the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations, the statement said. The statement also quoted Anifah as saying, in his opening speech at the meeting, that although Malaysia and Australia did have differing positions on certain issues, he was glad to note that the foundation of both countries relations, which was based on historical, people to people and economic links, had never eroded. "Bilateral cooperation between Malaysia and Australia has been vibrantly progressing in recent years," Anifah said. --BERNAMA