Malaysia, UAE to boost strategic ties in economy, renewable energy and AI
14 Jan 2025
Malaysia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have agreed to boost strategic cooperation in politics, economy and investment, defence, renewable energy (RE) and nuclear, tourism, sustainability as well as artificial intelligence (AI).
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said this was the outcome of his audiences with UAE president Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan on Jan 14 and UAE vice president and prime minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum in Dubai on Jan 13.
Anwar said his presence at the Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week (ADSW) 2025 also accorded him the opportunity to deliver his views on Malaysia and Asean’s role in the issue of sustainability.
He said his audience with Sheikh Mohammed was also an opportunity to strengthen bilateral ties.
“What we achieved was the Malaysia-UAE Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (MY-UAE CEPA), which will enable us to elevate bilateral cooperation including investment and trade.
“The UAE is the first country from the Gulf Cooperation Council (to sign a Free Trade Agreement) with us. We see this as a very good start,” he told Malaysian media at the end of his visit today.
He said the agreement targets an increase in the country’s exports to the UAE to US$13.5 billion by 2032.
He said his meetings with UAE sovereign wealth funds such as Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), Mubadala and Abu Dhabi Future Energy Co PJSC (Masdar) were also fruitful.
Anwar said Malaysia welcomed Masdar’s cooperation and participation in the energy sector.
On Monday, the prime minister meet with Mohamed Jameel Al Ramahi, chief executive officer of Masdar.
He said the government informed them that it would facilitate Masdar’s investment plans in Malaysia through joint ventures with local companies for green energy projects, infrastructure, battery storage, and strengthening the energy grid.
Anwar also had a discussion with Sheikh Hameed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, managing director of ADIA, one of the world’s largest sovereign wealth funds.
“This involved AIDA’s participation in the restructuring of Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB). Their participation is key given their experience in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, with the London Heathrow airport and Paris’ Charles De Gaulle airport.
“We discussed ADIA’s close cooperation with Khazanah Nasional. The ADIA leadership, as well as the country’s leadership, regarded the (MAHB) project as a major one which in which they would extend all support to Khazanah,” he said.
The discussion with ADIA, he said, also involved projects related to the New Industrial Master Plan 2030 (NIMP 2030), the Madani Economy framework, as well as projects in the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone (JS-SEZ), such as advanced manufacturing.
“It also includes infrastructure development, green technology, RE, logistics, healthcare, the digital economy, and education,” he said.
On the meeting with Mubadala, he said it revolved around liquefied natural gas, which also involved Petronas and Gentari.
They also discussed the development of gas-related infrastructure, as well as exploring the development of value chains such as blue hydrogen and carbon and capture storage (CCS) in Kuantan in Pahang, Kerteh in Terengganu and Sarawak.
“We also touched on the new Kerian Integrated Green Industrial Park (KIGIP) project on renewable energy, as well as the JS-SEZ,” he said.
The prime minister, on the sidelines of the ADSW 2025, also had a discussion with Kenyan president William Ruto and Ugandan president Yoweri Museveni to foster better ties with the African nations.
On the Asean and GCC Summit in May, he said Abu Dhabi ruler Sheikh Mohamed had given his commitment to attend together with other GCC heads of state and governments.
Source: NST
