LONDON, July 1 – Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak’s four-day working visit to the United Kingdom will further enhance the already blooming relations between the two countries.
The visit is also to ensure that bilateral trade between the two countries is on track to achieve the target of doubling the trade to RM26 billion by 2016, according to the Malaysian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom Datuk Seri Zakaria Sulong, here.
Zakaria said the goal of doubling bilateral trade between Malaysia and the UK was among the important issues that would be discussed during the meeting between Najib and his British counterpart David Cameron on Thursday.
The agreement to increase bilateral trade between the two countries from RM13.64 billion last year to RM26 billion within the next three years was reached by the two leaders during Cameron’s first official visit to Malaysia in April last year, since being appointed as Britain’s Prime Minister in May 2010 and also to reciprocate Najib’s official visit to the UK in 2011.
Zakaria said meeting the target would be a challenge for both countries, considering the annual growth rate in bilateral trade between the two countries was at 2.1 per cent.
However, with the existence of a special working group involving the British High Commission and Malaysia’s International Trade and Industry Ministry, he was confident the group would be able to identify new areas that could be explored for mutual benefit.
Zakaria was speaking to Malaysian journalists here Sunday in conjunction with Najib’s official visit to London beginning Monday.
Najib is expected to arrive here Monday from Tanzania after a three-day working visit to the African country where he also attended the Global Smart Partnership Dialogue 2013 since Saturday.
Zakaria said Najib and Cameron were expected to hold bilateral discussions on Thursday before both perform the ground-breaking for the Battersea Power Station project, near here.
The redevelopment of the power station at a cost of 8 billion pounds (RM39.2 billion) and owned by a Malaysian consortium comprising the Employees Provident Fund (EPF), Sime Darby Bhd and SP Setia Bhd, is Malaysia’s biggest project in the UK.
Zakaria said Najib’s meeting with Cameron was also expected to touch on the Global Movement of Moderates (GMM) that was introduced by Najib, the concept of which could be applied in facing a changing situation in the UK from homogeneity to multiculturalism, which would be challenging for that country.
The two leaders would also touch on developments taking place around the globe, especially on the turmoil in Syria and the world trade situation which was still sluggish at the moment, he said.
“Najib will also attend a media briefing on the 9th World Islamic Economic Forum (WIEF), which will be held in October in London, the first in a non-Muslim country, making the forum a part of the global community.
“The UK is among the countries in Europe with a sizeable Muslim population.” Zakaria also said that the prime minister would attend a tea reception with Friends of Barisan Nasional UK (FBNUK), comprising Malaysians staying in the UK and their friends. The association was launched by Najib in May last year during his working visit, here.
Senior Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs Baroness Warsi (Sayeeda Hussain Warsi), who is also Minister for Faith and Community, and Minister of State at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Hugo Swire will be among the distinguished guests at the gathering organised by Lord Sheikh (Mohd Iltaf Sheikh), a supporter of the FBNUK.
Zakaria said Najib would also be meeting other Malaysians in the UK, including the second of batch of 130 students sponsored by Felda for three months of study at the Limkokwing University of Creative Technology, here.
Najib is also scheduled to launch the 1Malaysia for Youth (1M4U) Outreach Centre UK, the first of such outside of Malaysia that involves the young generation.
The prime minister’s wife Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor, who is accompanying him on his working visit, will visit the TreeHouse School, a school for autistic children, on Tuesday.
– BERNAMA
