VIENTIANE: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said Malaysia has requested a waiver of visa requirements on a reciprocal basis with Canada.

The request was conveyed to his Canadian counterpart Justin Trudeau during a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the 44th and 45th ASEAN Summits and Related Summits, here today.

On another matter, the Prime Minister said Malaysia welcomes the establishment of the BlackBerry Cyber Security Centre of Excellence (CCoE) in Cyberjaya, which will strengthen cooperation between the two countries in cyber security.

Malaysia’s Cybersecurity Centre of Excellence (CCoE), established on March 26 this year, has the potential to become an international hub for addressing emerging cyber threats.

Anwar also said Malaysia looks forward to the early conclusion of the memorandum of understanding (MoU) on Defence Cooperation between the two countries.

The 44th and 45th ASEAN Summits and Related Summits, which officially began yesterday, will run until tomorrow.

Laos, as ASEAN Chairman for 2024, will hand over the chairmanship to Malaysia, which will assume the role as ASEAN Chairman for 2025.

Malaysia will officially hold the position from Jan 1.