PUTRAJAYA: Japan’s prime minister Fumio Kishida will undertake a working visit to Malaysia from Nov 4-5.
This will be his first visit to Malaysia since his appointment as Japan’s prime minister in October 2021.
Wisma Putra, in a statement, said Kishida is scheduled to hold a meeting with Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim to review the progress of bilateral relations.
They are expected to look into further cooperation in trade and investment, education, defence, environment and energy security as well as information and communications.
They will exchange views on various regional and international issues of common interest, including the Palestine-Israel conflict.
“The visit is poised to further strengthen the already established good relations between the two countries.
“As Japan continues its vital role as an Asean dialogue partner, this visit holds special significance as it coincides with the commemoration of the 50th anniversary of Asean-Japan Friendship and Cooperation this year,” said the statement.
The meeting will be followed by a luncheon hosted by Anwar in honour of Kishida.
The leaders will also witness the exchange of a memorandum of cooperation in the field of information and communications involving the communications and digital ministry and the internal affairs and communications ministry of Japan.
Japan has been Malaysia’s fourth largest trading partner for eight successive years since 2015.
In 2022, trade with Japan was valued at RM181.51 billion, contributing 6.4% of Malaysia’s total trade.
As of June 2023, a total of 2,778 projects by Japanese companies have been implemented in Malaysia, with investments amounting to RM91.89 billion.