NAJIB ACCORDED OFFICIAL WELCOME IN CANBERRA

From Leslean Arshad

CANBERRA, March 3 (Bernama) -- Australia rolled out a grand welcoming ceremony here on Thursday for the visiting Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak.


Amid a pleasant sunny autumn, Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard warmly welcomed Najib at the Parliament House forecourt, which features a magnificent piece of Indigenous artwork created from 100,000 mosaic tiles.

A 19-gun salute was fired before the national anthems of both countries were played.

Clad in a dark suit, Najib later inspected a guard-of-honour, witnessed by top Malaysian and Australian dignitaries.

Najib and Gillard later held a restricted meeting, followed by a bilateral meeting with senior members of both delegations.

Najib, who arrived in this Australian capital on Wednesday for a three-day official visit to Australia, will have a busy schedule in Canberra and Melbourne.

The trip is his first to Australia since assuming the premiership in April 2009.

Najib, in a Facebook posting about his trip to the country, said: "We are looking to further strengthen bilateral relations and more ways to boost cooperation."