KUALA LUMPUR — Yang di-Pertuan Agong Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar has expressed his belief that Malaysia and China will continue to strengthen cooperation between the two countries, despite various geopolitical challenges.
Sultan Ibrahim also said Malaysia is focused on deeper economic integration, strengthening supply chain and industrial collaboration, increasing connectivity, and upholding the principles of mutual respect and benefit in engagement with all partners, including with China.
“I believe there is great potential for Chinese companies and investors to explore opportunities here as it is in line with the importance of regional connectivity and high-quality development under China’s ‘Belt and Road’ Initiative.
“With strong strategic incentives and a good location, the Forest City Special Financial Hub within the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone (JS-SEZ) has emerged as one of the region’s prime investment locations,” said Sultan Ibrahim.
His Majesty said this when speaking at a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping at Istana Negara here, today, and his remarks were also posted to his Facebook page.
Sultan Ibrahim also agreed to invite the Chinese Government to promote language exchanges between the two countries.
His Majesty said the number of student exchanges between the two countries had increased and Malaysia intended to send more students to China to exchange knowledge and culture.
“I believe language is an important bridge in strengthening bilateral relations. In this direction, I intend to actively promote the Sultan Ibrahim Malay Studies Chair at Beijing Foreign Studies University (BFSU),” said His Majesty.
Earlier, President Xi was accorded a state welcome at Istana Negara in conjunction with a three-day State Visit starting yesterday at the invitation of Sultan Ibrahim.
This visit marks Xi’s second official visit to Malaysia in 12 years, following the last visit in 2013 which saw the two countries upgrade diplomatic relations to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.
Xi’s visit is part of the Chinese President’s first State Visit series this year which also includes Vietnam and Cambodia.
Malaysia and China established diplomatic relations on May 31, 1974. The two countries celebrated the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations last year.
For 16 consecutive years since 2009, China has remained Malaysia’s largest trading partner.
Total trade between the two countries is estimated at RM484.12 billion in 2024, representing 16.8 per cent of Malaysia’s total global trade (RM2.88 trillion). – April 16, 2025