Malaysian PM Anwar in Singapore on Dec 4 for retreat with PM Wong

[SINGAPORE] Malaysian Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Anwar Ibrahim will visit Singapore on Dec 4 for the 12th Malaysia-Singapore Leaders’ Retreat, where both countries are expected to exchange several agreements.

The visit is at the invitation of his Singapore counterpart, Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) said in a statement on Wednesday (Dec 3) evening.

The annual meeting is a key platform for the two leaders to take stock of bilateral cooperation, explore new avenues for collaboration, and provide guidance on how to take their relationship forward, PMO said.

This leaders’ retreat is the second between PM Wong and Anwar, following the 11th retreat in Putrajaya, Malaysia, in January this year.

It will also be their fifth meeting in 2025; they met on the sidelines of the 46th and 47th Asean Summits, as well as during Anwar’s visit to Singapore in May.

PM Wong will host Anwar at a lunch, before the two delegations meet.

The leaders will then witness the exchange of several memorandums of understanding (MOUs) in mutual areas of interest, including health and the fight against drugs.

These will “broaden bilateral cooperation and increase the exchanges between both sides”, PMO said.

During the retreat, the leaders will also celebrate 60 years of diplomatic relations between Malaysia and Singapore.

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Anwar will be accompanied by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Energy Transition and Water Transformation Fadillah Yusof; Premier of Sarawak Abang Johari Openg; Minister of Foreign Affairs Mohamad Hasan; Minister of Transport Anthony Loke; Minister of Home Affairs Saifuddin Nasution Ismail; Acting Minister of Economy Amir Hamzah Azizan; and Chief Minister of Johor Onn Hafiz Ghazi.

The Singapore delegation will comprise eight political office-holders, in addition to PM Wong.

They are Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Trade and Industry Gan Kim Yong; Minister for Home Affairs K Shanmugam; Minister for Foreign Affairs Vivian Balakrishnan; Minister for Sustainability and the Environment Grace Fu; Minister for Manpower Tan See Leng; Minister for National Development Chee Hong Tat; Acting Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs Muhammad Faishal; and Acting Minister for Transport Jeffrey Siow.

At the last retreat in January, PM Wong and Anwar welcomed the exchange of a joint agreement on the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone.

They noted good progress in discussions of two outstanding bilateral issues – maritime boundaries and airspace management – and affirmed their commitment to resolving them.

The countries also exchanged MOUs in multiple areas of cooperation, including combatting transnational crime; carbon capture and storage; urban development; higher education; and social welfare.