KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia and Russia discussed strengthening bilateral ties, particularly in education and regional security, during a meeting between Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan and Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov.
The talks took place on the sidelines of the 58th ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Kuala Lumpur.
Mohamad highlighted Malaysia’s interest in expanding opportunities for students in Russia, especially in Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) programmes.
“I expressed Malaysia’s interest in securing more placements for our students, and Russia has agreed,“ he said after the meeting.
The discussions also covered regional cooperation, including Russia’s potential signing of the Southeast Asia Nuclear Weapon-Free Zone (SEANWFZ) treaty.
“Russia is considering signing the SEANWFZ treaty with ASEAN, and the documentation will be negotiated at the official level,“ Mohamad added.
Lavrov attended multiple ASEAN-related meetings, including the ASEAN Post-Ministerial Conference with Russia and the East Asia Summit Foreign Ministers’ Meeting.
Russian news agency TASS reported that both ministers reviewed bilateral cooperation and ASEAN-Russia strategic partnership prospects.
Malaysia currently chairs ASEAN under the theme ‘Inclusivity and Sustainability.’
Russia, a full-fledged ASEAN dialogue partner since 1996, elevated its ties to a Strategic Partnership in 2018.
Lavrov described the discussions as productive, telling journalists, “It was a nice meeting.” – Bernama
