Anwar’s visit to Pakistan, Bangladesh add new dynamism to vital relationships

NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s visit to Pakistan and Bangladesh this week has added new dynamism to the vital relationships that boost Malaysia’s expanding trade and foreign relations.

In Islamabad, Anwar and his delegation were warmly received, with the Pakistani government making sure the importance it attached to the visit was fully conveyed.

The Malaysian prime minister was greeted by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif at Nur Khan Air Base outside Islamabad upon arrival on Wednesday and also seen off on Friday as Anwar ended his three-day state visit before taking off to Bangladesh for an official visit.

Trade and business are important elements but Malaysia-Pakistan relations are multifaceted and underpinned by shared interests, historic ties and common values.

Pakistan as a Sectoral Dialogue Partner of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) seeks greater engagement with Southeast Asia and Malaysia is at the heart of its efforts.

For the Malaysian Prime Minister, the visit’s significance was obvious when he was lauded for supporting Islamic causes, humanitarian issues, social justice, interfaith harmony and for countering Islamophobia as President Asif Ali Zardari conferred the nation’s highest civilian honour Nishan-e-Pakistan on Anwar.

The investiture was attended by Shehbaz, federal ministers, military services chiefs, diplomats and senior government officials.

At a joint press conference by Anwar and Shehbaz, it was announced that Pakistan would translate Anwar’s book titled ‘SCRIPT for a Better Malaysia: An Empowering Vision and Policy Framework for Action’ into Urdu.

The acronym SCRIPT stands for sustainability, care and compassion, respect, innovation, prosperity and trust.

Meanwhile, three translated works of renowned poet, philosopher and thinker Allama Muhammad Iqbal (1877-1938) have been made available in Malay.

Iqbal extensively wrote in Urdu and Persian on subjects such as Islam, East-West relations, colonialism and politics. He may be Pakistan’s national poet but his ideas and writings hold global appeal, especially in South Asia, Iran and the Arab region.

“The thoughts of Iqbal are consistent with Malaysia’s philosophy of nationhood, which we call Madani. At the core, it is a deep commitment to human dignity, social justice, and mutual respect — principles that align harmoniously with the philosophical ideals of Allama Iqbal,” Anwar said in a speech at the National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST), where he was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Philosophy on Thursday (Oct 3).

Malaysia and Pakistan discussed a range of topics including investments, trade in agricultural commodities, defence and security cooperation, food processing and tie-ups in the halal sector.

They also looked at enhancing air links, student exchange and tourism.

Shehbaz, speaking at the joint press conference, mentioned that Pakistan’s immediate aim is to raise its meat exports to Malaysia to USD200mil per year and export 100,000 tonnes of basmati rice.

Bilateral trade in 2023 stood at RM7.84bil (US$1.4bil), a figure seen as low in view of the huge untapped potential for economic engagements.

Anwar said the Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (Matrade) will next month open an office in Karachi, Pakistan’s largest city and a busy hub for shipping and commercial activities.

There is growing interest among Pakistani students to study in Malaysia, and similarly, Pakistan is keen to attract Malaysian youth to its universities.

Anwar also had a meeting with Pakistani army chief General Syed Asim Munir.

They discussed bilateral strategic interests, regional security, and defence cooperation, according to Pakistan’s state media.

Pakistan due to its proximity to West Asia and Central Asia is a key player in major geopolitical affairs.

Its location also puts it in a position to influence regional energy and trade routes.

Anwar and his delegation flew from Pakistan to Bangladesh. Although it was only a one-day visit, the mission covered a wide range of important issues.

The Prime Minister and Bangladesh interim government’s Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus enjoy a good rapport as they have known each other for a long time.

With Malaysia assuming the Asean chairmanship in 2025, Yunus sought Malaysia’s help for Bangladesh to become a sectoral dialogue partner of the regional grouping.

Yunus drew Anwar’s attention to several challenges faced by Bangladesh in hosting 1.2 million Rohingya refugees, saying a solution to the Rohingya crisis should be found so that they can go back to their homes in Myanmar.

“We will keep on raising the issue. Malaysia will be supporting us. We can’t wait indefinitely,” Yunus was quoted as saying by the Bangladesh state media.

He urged the international community not to ignore the Rohingya crisis as it is “a ticking time-bomb”.

Anwar told Yunus that Malaysia would look into the issue of granting entry to 18,000 Bangladeshi nationals who had previously approved work visas but could not enter the country before a May deadline, Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha reported.

Cooperation in areas such as artificial intelligence, finance, health, higher education, agriculture, energy, defence and the halal sector were discussed as well.

The two leaders agreed to hold the next round of Free Trade Agreement (FTA) talks soon, the report said.

Anwar became the first head of government since the interim government was formed in August. – Bernama