Friendship will shape future Malaysia-Russia ties, says King
MOSCOW: His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim, King of Malaysia, says that his state visit to Russia reflects his sincere wish to strengthen ties and cooperation between the two nations.
His Majesty said Malaysia regarded Russia as a trusted and important partner.
"Our diplomatic relations span more than five decades, having been formally established in April 1967. I'm reminded that Malaysia was among the earliest Asean nations to establish ties with Moscow.
"As a Russian saying goes, friendship is more valuable than money. It is this spirit of friendship, I believe, that will continue to shape the direction of the relationship between our two nations for the benefit of our people.'
Sultan Ibrahim made the remarks during an official meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin following a state welcoming ceremony at the Grand Kremlin Palace here on Wednesday (Aug 6).
Accompanying His Majesty were Defence Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin, who is also Minister-in-Attendance, Foreign Ministry secretary-general Datuk Seri Amran Mohamed Zin and Malaysian Ambassador to Russia Datuk Cheong Loon Lai.
Putin was joined by senior Russian officials, including Aide to the Russian President for International Affairs Yury Ushakov, Minister of Economic Development Maxim Reshetnikov, Minister of Science and Higher Education Valery Falkov, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Alexander Pankin and Deputy Minister of Defence Alexander Fomin.
Sultan Ibrahim is on his maiden state visit to Russia until Aug 10 at the invitation of Putin.
This marks the first state visit by a Malaysian Head of State to Russia.- Bernama
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
12 minutes ago
- The Star
Brunei Sultan and consort to attend Singapore's 60th National Day Parade
The royal couple last attended Singapore's National Day Parade in 2019. - Borneo Bulletin/ANN BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN: His Majesty Sultan Hassanal and Her Majesty Pengiran Anak Saleha are to attend the 60th National Day Parade of Singapore on Saturday (Aug 9), at the invitation of the Prime Minister of Singapore Lawrence Wong. The visit of the royal couple to attend the National Day Parade of Singapore reflects the close, warm, and long-standing friendship between the sultanate and Singapore. Both countries enjoy excellent bilateral cooperation, especially in the areas of trade and investment, currency interchangeability, defence, as well as people-to-people relations, and also work closely together at the regional and international level, including in Asean, the United Nations, and the Commonwealth. Their Majesties last attended the National Day Parade in 2019 in commemoration of the Singapore Bicentennial. - Borneo Bulletin/ANN
New Straits Times
12 minutes ago
- New Straits Times
Zambry: Two northern polytechnics to review courses to meet semiconductor industry needs
GEORGE TOWN: The Higher Education Ministry has directed two northern-region polytechnics to review and restructure their academic programmes to align with the growing demands of the semiconductor industry. The two polytechnics are located in Balik Pulau and Kulim. Higher Education Minister Datuk Seri Zambry Abdul Kadir said the move was part of a broader national strategy to boost the talent pipeline, supporting Malaysia's fast-growing role in the global semiconductor sector. "I have directed two polytechnics in the northern region, particularly in Balik Pulau and Kulim, to reevaluate and redesign their course offerings. "This is crucial to ensure they meet the increasing demands in this rapidly evolving industry," he said after the launch of the 32nd IEEE International Symposium on the Physical and Faiure Analysis of Integrated Circuits here today. In his speech earlier, Zambry had highlighted the need for Malaysia's technical education institutions to evolve alongside advancements in chip development and manufacturing. He said changes must also take place at the polytechnics and community college levels, especially in areas already embedded in strong semiconductor ecosystems. Malaysia has been positioning itself as a key player in the global chip supply chain, with institutions like Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) spearheading research and development. The directive to polytechnics is aimed at ensuring the country's technical workforce is adequately prepared to support front-end semiconductor manufacturing and innovation. Zambry said Malaysia is now known as the "Silicon Valley of the East" and is among the world's leading countries in semiconductor technology. He said the sector was expected to continue growing in the future. "Therefore, the government cannot rely solely, say on USM — we must look ahead and anticipate future challenges and demands. "Creating a conducive ecosystem for all stakeholders is crucial, not just for USM, but also for other universities. "For instance, Unimap (Universiti Malaysia Perlis) is also one of the leading institutions in this field. "Let's not forget our MTUN universities (Malaysian technical university network). There are currently four, and recently, Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi announced the addition of UniKL (Universiti Kuala Lumpur), making it five technical universities specialising in high-tech fields such as engineering, semiconductors, IT and artificial intelligence." On today's event, Zambry praised USM for working together with various players in the semiconductor and computer chip industries. He added that what was even more encouraging was USM's progress to an advanced level, including its efforts to develop its own chip. "We hope that through this chip production process, they will eventually secure their own intellectual property, which in turn will boost Malaysia's image as a chip-producing nation. "Previously, our role may have been focused on the back-end aspects of semiconductor manufacturing. But now, we aim for Malaysia to move into the front-end space, which includes the actual fabrication of chips." In addition, Zambry said the country had established strategic partnerships and collaborations with major global players. He added that these were some of the strategies being implemented to empower universities with expertise in this field.
Daily Express
12 minutes ago
- Daily Express
Kua questions DAP's stance after Guan Eng's minimum wage remark
Published on: Thursday, August 07, 2025 Published on: Thu, Aug 07, 2025 By: FMT Reporters Text Size: Former Petaling Jaya MP Kua Kia Song criticised DAP's Lim Guan Eng for ignoring the fact that Malaysia is an ILO member and has worked for years to align with its standards. PETALING JAYA: Former MP and Suaram director Kua Kia Soong has questioned whether DAP's stance on social justice and equality has changed after the party's national adviser Lim Guan Eng made remarks opposing the minimum wage and EPF contributions for migrant workers. Kua said the party, which has long styled itself as 'the conscience of Malaysian politics', risks appearing like a 'hollow vessel' when it comes to defending labour rights. Advertisement He also took aim at DAP's youth wing for remaining silent on the matter. 'What is the point of maintaining a wing called 'DAP Socialist Youth' (DAPSY) if its members remain silent while the party publicly defends wage discrimination and violates international labour norms?' he asked in a statement today. 'If DAPSY cannot even take a principled stand when one of its senior leaders calls for lower wages for migrants and effectively codifies inequality into law, then it must answer a simple question: What exactly do you exist for?' While debating the 13th Malaysia Plan in Parliament this week, Lim said there was 'no need to mandate the RM1,700 minimum wage and 2% EPF contributions for migrant workers' already in the workforce. Advertisement Lim pointed to Singapore's policy of not requiring Central Provident Fund contributions for migrant workers since 2003 without repercussions from the International Labour Organisation (ILO). The former finance minister also said that Malaysia was not bound by any United Nations or ILO conventions. But Kua said this ignores the fact that Malaysia is an ILO member and has worked for years to align with its standards. 'Never mind that ILO Convention 100 mandates equal pay for equal work, or that Convention 111 prohibits discrimination based on national origin, or that Convention 143 insists on equal treatment of migrants in wages and working conditions,' he added. * Follow us on our official WhatsApp channel and Telegram for breaking news alerts and key updates! * Do you have access to the Daily Express e-paper and online exclusive news? Check out subscription plans available. Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express's Telegram channel. Daily Express Malaysia
