Ismail Sabri leaves New York for UAE


Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob meets Palestine President Mahmoud Abbas in New York. – Facebook pic, September 26, 2022.

PRIME Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob left for the UAE yesterday after concluding a four-day working visit to New York, where he addressed the United Nations general assembly.

He arrived in New York on Thursday to join other world leaders from more than 150 countries at the 77th session of the assembly. 

Ismail delivered the country’s national statement at the assembly on Friday, speaking in Bahasa Malaysia, the first time by a Malaysian leader.

He touched on various international issues, among them the conflict in Ukraine and the issues of Myanmar and Palestine, as well as food security and climate change. 

He also proposed the establishment of an international monetary co-operation mechanism amid rising global inflation. 

This was the second time that Ismail had addressed the assembly. Last year, he read out the country’s national statement virtually due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

On the side-lines, Ismail met with Palestine President Mahmoud Abbas, Netherlands Prime Minister Mark Rutte and UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres. 

He also hosted a dinner for the Malaysian diaspora in the US. 

Ismail’s second part of his working visit overseas is a four-day trip to the UAE starting today. 

He is scheduled to have an audience with the President of the UAE, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, at the Presidential Palace in Abu Dhabi later today. 

This will be the first meeting between the two leaders since Sheikh Mohamed’s appointment as the new president of the UAE on May 14. 

High on the agenda of talks between the two leaders will be discussions to explore potential areas to further strengthen the long-standing and multifaceted co-operation between Malaysia and the UAE. 

Ismail will also visit the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), with a view to looking into potential collaboration between ADNOC and Petronas in oil and gas as well as renewable energy. 

In 2021, the UAE was Malaysia’s largest trading partner, second-largest export destination and second-largest import source among West Asian countries. 

For the year 2021, Malaysia’s total trade with the UAE increased by 7.9% to RM22.3 billion from RM20.7 billion in 2020. – Bernama, September 26, 2022.


Sign up or sign in here to comment.


Comments