Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, on Sunday, met Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim for a breakfast meeting in Delhi.
Ibrahim is in India for the ongoing BRICS Summit, being held in the national capital on September 12-13. He discussed India-Malaysia ties with Gandhi and Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, who was also present during the meeting. Follow BRICS Summit LIVE updates here.
The Congress shared pictures of Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi from the breakfast meeting with Ibrahim on its social media handles.
The Rae Bareli MP’s meeting with the Malaysian PM comes a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Ibrahim held talks focusing on cooperation in trade, semiconductors, infrastructure, and defence.
The two leaders had met on the margins of the ongoing BRICS Summit.
Malaysia is a partner country in the BRICS grouping. It is also a key partner country for India within the ASEAN grouping.
PM Modi’s bilateral talks with Anwar Ibrahim
PM Narendra Modi and his Malaysian counterpart, Anwar Ibrahim, held talks on Saturday, focusing on cooperation in trade, semiconductors, infrastructure, and defence.
“Maritime neighbours, close partners and a friendship powered by our people. Delighted to meet PM Anwar Ibrahim,” Modi said on social media after the meeting.
“India-Malaysia ties are moving into ambitious new areas like semiconductors, critical minerals, clean energy, infrastructure and talent mobility,” he said.
Modi said the growing defence partnership, expanding two-way investments, and deeper people-to-people links reflect the new momentum in the bilateral comprehensive strategic partnership.
Anwar, on his part, said he has raised with Modi the need to “facilitate and accelerate the entry of Malaysian export goods into the Indian market” to provide Malaysian companies with opportunities to tap into India’s rapidly growing market.
The discussions also focused on efforts to expand cooperation in strategic sectors, particularly the semiconductor industry, the Malaysian prime minister said.
“Malaysia and India possess complementary strengths that can be harnessed through industrial collaboration, supply chain integration, talent development and two-way investments,” he added.
The ministry of external affairs (MEA) said the two leaders took stock of the outcomes of Modi’s visit to Malaysia in February and reviewed progress in cooperation across areas such as trade and investment, defence and security, infrastructure, digital economy, energy, fintech, education, tourism, and people-to-people ties.
“Prime Minister Modi appreciated Malaysia’s continued support in strengthening ASEAN-India relations. The leaders exchanged views on key regional and global issues of mutual interest,” it said.
The two leaders expressed their continued commitment to advancing the India-Malaysia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, the MEA said. Anwar also conveyed Malaysia’s concurrence to the establishment of an Indian consulate at Kota Kinabalu in Sabah.
