Japan-Malaysia Relations

December 2, 2021
Japanese

On December 2, Mr. KISHIDA Fumio, Prime Minister of Japan, held a summit telephone talk with His Excellency Dato’ Sri Ismail Sabri bin Yaakob, Prime Minister of Malaysia, for about 25 minutes from 10:22 a.m. The overview of the talk is as follows:

  1. At the outset, Prime Minister Kishida conveyed a message of congratulations on Prime Minister Ismail Sabri’s appointment as Prime Minister and expressed his interest in forging close ties with Prime Minister Ismail Sabri. In response, Prime Minister Ismail Sabri conveyed a message of congratulations on Mr. Kishida’s appointment as Prime Minister and stated that he would like to further develop the bilateral relationship.
  2. Prime Minister Kishida expressed his intention to take the 65th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations and the 40th anniversary of the Look East Policy next year as an opportunity to further develop the bilateral relationship and to promote cooperation in issues such as tackling COVID-19, security, maritime safety, establishment of branch campus of the University of Tsukuba. Furthermore, Prime Minister Kishida stated that he would like to propel concrete cooperation including in the Sulu-Celebes Seas and their surrounding areas for the realization of a “Free and Open Indo-Pacific” and the “ASEAN Outlook for the Indo-Pacific.” In response, Prime Minister Ismail Sabri expressed his appreciation for Japan's various cooperation including the vaccine donation, and stated that he would like to further strengthen bilateral cooperation toward the 40th anniversary of the Look East Policy next year.
  3. The two leaders also exchanged views on regional affairs, and Prime Minister Kishida expressed his strong opposition to unilateral attempts to change the status quo in the East and South China Seas. The two leaders also exchanged views on North Korea, and Prime Minister Kishida asked for understanding and cooperation from Prime Minister Ismail Sabri on the abductions issue.
  4. Prime Minister Kishida shared his intention to support ASEAN’s initiatives regarding Myanmar.

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