PM’s statement to media, in joint press briefing with Prime Minister of Malaysia

His Excellency Prime Minister Dato Sri Mohammed Najib bin Tun Abdul Razak, Members of the media, It is a great pleasure to welcome His Excellency the Prime Minister of Malaysia to India.Excellency Najib, your visit gives me and the people of India an opportunity to reciprocate the warmth and goodwill that I enjoyed during my visit to Malaysia in November 2015.Your visit also comes at a historic time in our relations.We are celebrating the 60th anniversary of the establishment of our diplomatic relations. And, Excellency, your personal attention and leadership has contributed much to the steady direction, strength and vibrancy in our ties. Your contributions have been instrumental in forging a wide-ranging Strategic Partnership with India. Friends, Our links with Malaysia have been civilizational and historic. Our relationship is rich and diverse.Our societies bond at many levels.Ties of culture and religion provide a strong connect between our people. The contributions of a large Indian community in Malaysia are of special value. They have not only nurtured our shared heritage. They have also been a strong driver of economic and people to people connectivity between our two countries.Prime Minister Najib and I had jointly inaugurated the Torana Gate in Kuala Lumpur during my last visit. Modelled on the Torana Gates of the Sanchi Stupa this stands as a symbol of our abiding friendship. Friends, In our extensive conversation today, Prime Minister Najib and I took stock of the full range of our cultural, economic and strategic engagement.We took note of the steady progress in implementation of key decisions taken by us during my visit to Malaysia in November 2015 and we agreed on a shared vision to enhance our strategic partnership. A vision that prioritizes an action oriented approach.In this effort, deepening the existing areas of cooperation, and charting new territory of engagement are among our key objectives. Friends, India and Malaysia have built a thriving economic partnership.In our efforts to scale this up, as the fastest growing large economy in the world, India offers unparallel opportunities.And, to build new avenues of prosperity in our societies we are ready to expand trade and capital flows between our two economies. Infrastructure has been an area of fruitful partnerships between us.But, we can do much more.India’s infrastructure needs and our ambitious vision of developing Smart cities match well with the Malaysian capacities. Malaysian companies are participating in many of our infrastructure projects across different states in India. Indian companies too are extensively engaged and invested in the Malaysian economy.We are pleased that a high level business delegation is accompanying Prime Minister Najib. I am confident that the business partnerships that they forge will enhance the level and momentum of our commercial engagement. We are also converging efforts aimed at food security that are linked to the wellbeing of our farmers. The MOU on proposed development of a fertiliser plant in Malaysia and off-take of surplus urea from Malaysia to India is a welcome development. Friends, The U.T.A.R. University of Malaysia has started Ayurveda degree courses in Malaysia for the first time.This is a welcome development. And, an Ayurveda Chair in the same University is in the pipeline.Its early finalization would further cement our cooperation in this field.Our educational exchanges have always been a strong promoter of people to people ties between our countries. The signing today of the MOU on Mutual Recognition of Degrees is a landmark development that will benefit the students and societies of both our countries. Friends, We live in times and in a region, where both conventional and non-conventional security threats are constantly on the rise.Prime Minister Najib and I agreed that these challenges threaten the stability and economic prosperity of our countries and the region. And, require us and other countries of the region to work together.In this context, I deeply appreciate our continuing cooperation with the Malaysian government in our joint anti-terrorism efforts. Excellency, your own leadership in countering radicalization and terrorism is an inspiration for the entire region. Our wide-ranging defence partnership has already brought our armed forces closer. We are cooperating in: training and capacity building; maintenance of equipment and military hardware; maritime security; and in Disaster response. Prime Minister Najib and I are also conscious of our role and responsibility in promoting economic prosperity, freedom of navigation, and stability in the Asia-Pacific region, especially its Oceans.To secure our societies, and for the greater regional good, we have agreed to further strengthen our strategic partnership to shape an effective response to our common concerns and challenges. Excellency Prime Minister Najib, Let me welcome you once again to India.I thank you for very productive discussions. I am confident that our decisions today will drive our strategic partnership to the next level. I wish you an enjoyable and fruitful stay in India. Thank you. Thank you very much.