India, Malaysia sign multiple pacts, agree to deepen defence and trade ties

New Delhi: India and Malaysia on Sunday agreed to expand defence cooperation, particularly in the domain of maritime security, even as the prime ministers of the two nations, Narendra Modi and Anwar Ibrahim, called for zero tolerance against terrorism and vowed to step up cooperation against radicalisation and violent extremism.

Modi and Ibrahim agreed on the need for early completion of the India-ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement. They agreed to promote the usage of local currency settlement in bilateral trade and investments and encouraged industries on both sides to further facilitate the invoicing and settlement of trade in local currencies, the Indian Rupee and the Malaysian Ringgit.

The two prime ministers encouraged greater cooperation and two-way investments across priority sectors, like infrastructure, energy, advanced manufacturing, semiconductors, healthcare, digital economy, fintech, startups, artificial intelligence, hospitality, green technologies and other high-value sectors.

Modi has been on a two-day visit to Kuala Lumpur since Saturday. As he and Ibrahim held talks on Sunday, the two sides announced several pacts, including the MoUs for cooperation in areas like combating and preventing corruption and disaster management, and an agreement on audio-visual co-production.

“In the field of security, we will strengthen cooperation in counterterrorism, intelligence sharing, and maritime security. We will also further expand defence cooperation,” Modi said after his meeting with Ibrahim. The two leaders witnessed the exchange of notes on cooperation in the field of semiconductors as well as on cooperation between the national security councils of India and Malaysia.

“Alongside AI and digital technologies, we will advance our partnership in semiconductors, health, and food security,” said the prime minister.

A Memorandum of Cooperation between the Employees’ State Insurance Cooperation (ESIC) of India and the Social Security Organisation (PERKESO) of Malaysia on social security programs and activities for India’s citizens as insured persons in the Southeast Asian nation.

The two prime ministers unequivocally and strongly condemned terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, including cross-border terrorism, according to a joint statement issued after their meeting. They called for zero tolerance of terrorism and for concerted international efforts to combat terrorism in a comprehensive and sustained manner. They agreed to counter radicalisation and violent extremism; combat financing of terrorism; prevent use of new and emerging technologies for terrorist purposes, through cooperation in information and knowledge sharing, exchange of best practices and capacity building.

They noted the linkages between terrorism and transnational organised crime. They agreed to cooperate in the area of transnational organised crime, including through the sharing of information and best practices.

“The social security agreement for the protection of Indian workers in Malaysia, the gratis e-visa for tourism, and the implementation of the UPI digital payment interface in Malaysia will all make the lives of citizens of both countries easier,” Modi said as he and Ibrahim jointly addressed the media persons. “After all, any partnership truly succeeds with strength when its benefits reach people directly.”

Ibrahim lauded India’s spectacular rise in the international economic and trade scene and described the decision to use local currencies for bilateral trade as remarkable.