PUTRAJAYA: Malaysia and Myanmar have agreed to forge stronger ties via exchanges of visits at all levels to further boost government-to-government cooperations and people-to-people contacts.
These decisions were made during a restricted meeting between Myanmar President U. Thein Sein and Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak held at the Perdana Putra complex today.
Foreign Affairs Minister Datuk Seri Anifah Aman said both countries had also discussed on regional and international issues of mutual concerns where both leaders had agreed to continue the close cooperation in various regional and international organisations.
"(For instance) both sides have agreed to waive visa requirement for government officials and business players who have been endorsed by their chambers of commerce," he told reporters after the meeting which lasted for about 90 minutes.
Anifah said several other matters were raised including on security and suggestion to expand air connection to Mandalay.
Any decision by Malaysian airline operators to add the Mandalay route, Anifah said, the prime minister had informed the Myanmar president that it would be a business decision.
The close ties between both countries, he said, could provide a firm foundation in expanding future bilateral cooperation to a closer partnership.
"Both sides recognised the need to maintain regular contacts, consultations and close coordination at various levels; promote regular exchange of ideas and opinions on international issues of common interest at the margins of international meetings and conferences such as Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean), the United Nations Organisations and other important international organisation framework," Anifah added.
Other areas of cooperation that both nations could explore further included trade and investment, human resources, education, tourism as well as technical and capacity building.