Brunei's Local News - Brudirect.com

Bandar Seri Begawan - Strategic partnerships between Brunei Darussalam and Malaysia in key new growth areas have been agreed that further underline the two countries' commitment towards enhancing bilateral ties.

This comes as His Majesty the Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam yesterday met in a four-eye meeting with Prime Minister of Malaysia, Dato Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, in what was to become the 12th Annual Leaders' Consultation between the Asean neighbours.

While the progress of bilateral cooperation has been extensive in numerous industries and sectors, in order to realise the true potential of both countries, the two leaders in a joint statement issued, voiced that the bilateral cooperation across the entire board should be intensified.

As such Malaysia has opened its doors for investment from Brunei and in particular for the

participation in development projects such as Iskandar Malaysia, and closer to its shores, the Sarawak Corridor for Renewable Energy (SCORE) and Sabah Development Corridor (SDC). Both His Majesty the Sultan and Dato Seri Abdullah highlighted the need for the two nations to continue working together in facilitating and creating a more conducive business environment, in particular for the business communities of Brunei, Sabah and Sarawak.

His Majesty will be taking a closer look at the Iskandar project, albeit through an aerial tour, which is scheduled to take place this morning (August 27). The Iskandar project is one of Malaysia's ambitious development plans, which will see Johor attain a Special Economic Zone, encompassing Johor Baharu, and is approximately three times the size of nearby Singapore. To further put into perspective, Iskandar Malaysia will be 48 times the size of Putrajaya which has become the hub of Malaysia's administration.

Another aspect in which Brunei and Malaysia cooperation has been identified is in the air services sector. Both leaders recognised the importance of the airline industry and have agreed that a rise in flight frequency, as well as operations, could further promote tourism and help foster closer friendship and understanding between the people of Brunei and Malaysia. As such further negotiations have been planned in order to fully explore the possible cooperation in the sector.

There was no news on the longstanding maritime boundary issue; however the joint statement between His Majesty and Prime Minister Dato Seri Abdullah stated that they were satisfied with the good and positive progress made, and are optimistic of reaching a successful resolution soon which stands to benefit both Brunei and Malaysia.

The two leaders expressed their satisfaction with the Frequent Travellers Card (FTC), launched last year, which has facilitated greater interaction between the people of Malaysia and Brunei. They agreed that the FTC should be further improved to ensure great usage by the public.

Meanwhile on the Asean front, the two Asean leaders welcomed the signing of the Asean Charter, both Brunei and Malaysia ratified the Charter in February 2008 and views it as a highlight of Malaysia and Brunei's longstanding commitment towards strengthening Asean.

The two leaders also engaged in discussion regarding the global food and energy security issues. Both agreed that a concerted effort by the international community would be necessary to reduce the hardship created by the crisis. The international efforts to bring peace and stability to the Middle East, in particular the people of Palestine also featured in the Brunei-Malaysia talks. The outcome of the discussion saw both leaders urging the disputing parties of Palestine and Israel to continue their efforts towards reaching an agreement consistent with the roadmap and the relevant United Nation Security Council resolutions.

As the month of Ram adhan draws nearer, both His Majesty and Prime Minister Abdullah extended their best wishes to the people of both countries. His Majesty in particular took the time to express his sincere gratitude to the Malaysian Premier, the State of Johor and the people of Malaysia for the warm welcome and hospitality accorded to both His Majesty and the Brunei delegation, which "manifests the warm, longstanding and close ties between the two countries."

The two leaders agreed to hold the 13th Annual Leaders' Consultation in Brunei Darussalam in 2009.

Earlier, His Majesty was greeted upon his arrival at the airport by HRH Tunku Ibrahim Ismail, the Tunku Mahkota of Johor, Dato' Haji Abdul Ghani Othman, Chief Minister of Johor, Datuk Seri Utama Dr Rais Yatim, Malaysian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dato' Shahrir Abdul Samad, Malaysian Minister of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs as the Minister-inAttendance, Dato' Abdul Latiff Yusof, Johor State Secretary and His Excellency Datuk Ku Jaafar Ku Sharri, the High Commissioner of Malaysia to Brunei Darussalam. On arrival at the meeting venue at the Pulai Springs Resort, His Majesty was received by the Prime Minister of Malaysia, Pehin Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud, Chief Minister of Sarawak, and Dato' Seri Musa Aman, Chief Minister of Sabah. -- Courtesy of The Brunei Times