Malaysia energetic, effective as Asean chair, says Singapore PM
Singaporean prime minister Lawrence Wong shakes hands with Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on the sidelines of the Asean Summit in Kuala Lumpur. (PMO pic).
SINGAPORE : Malaysia has been an energetic and effective Asean chair, says Singapore's prime minister, Lawrence Wong.
Wong, who is in Malaysia until Tuesday for the 46th Asean Summit and related summits, said Singapore will continue to work closely with Malaysia to advance Asean integration efforts.
'Caught up with Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on the sidelines of the Asean Summit. I congratulated him on chairing a successful summit,' he posted on Facebook.
Both leaders also took stock of various bilateral issues, he said.
Wong said he looked forward to welcoming Anwar to Singapore later this week at the Shangri-La Dialogue, Asia's premier defence summit.
Anwar is scheduled to deliver a special address at the dialogue, which will be held from May 30 to June 1.
In a separate post, Wong said he had a fruitful meeting with Indonesian president Prabowo Subianto on the sidelines of the summit.
He said they discussed global and regional developments as well as the importance of a strong and united Asean in these turbulent times.
'We also look forward to closer bilateral cooperation. The longstanding relationship between Singapore and Indonesia has served as an anchor of stability against geopolitical headwinds,' he said.
Separately, Prabowo emphasised the need for Asean to become a stronger and more united regional bloc in facing global uncertainties, calling on all member states to strengthen regional cooperation.
'Asean must be stronger, more solid. The situation is uncertain, so we must work together more effectively,' he said.
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