BRITISH Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab will visit Kuala Lumpur tomorrow to promote the United Kingdom as open for business and a world leader in climate change action ahead of the 2020 United Nations Climate Change Conference.

Raab is in the final part of his first Asia-Pacific trip to highlight the opportunities in trade and investment with the two countries as the UK has left the European Union, the British High Commission in Kuala Lumpur said in a statement.

In Kuala Lumpur, Raab will use a series of high-level meetings – including with Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad, Foreign Minister Saifuddin Abdullah and Minister of Energy, Science, Technology, Environment and Climate Change Yeo Bee Yin – to set out a vision for future relationship with Malaysia in trade, science and innovation, climate change and education, the statement said.

“Trade, investment and business links between the UK and Malaysia are already worth more than £5billion (RM26.8 billion) a year, with iconic projects like the redevelopment of Battersea Power Station in London showcasing Malaysian investment in the UK.

“Malaysia is the second-largest market in Asean for the UK and there are huge opportunities for the future,” it said.

Later this month, British medical devices company Smith+Nephew will be breaking ground on its first manufacturing plant in Southeast Asia in Penang, creating up to 800 new jobs over the next five years and giving a big boost to UK-Malaysia trade.

Underlining the UK’s position as a world leader in tackling climate change, promoting sustainability and preserving the environment, the foreign secretary will make clear of the UK’s support for Malaysian efforts to clean up the oceans by reducing plastic use and marine debris, and pledge to work together to stop illegal shipments of plastic waste from UK. – Bernama, February 10, 2020.