RIYADH — The first meeting of the Saudi-Malaysian Coordination Council reviewed the progress in bilateral relations between the Saudi and Malaysian governments. Saudi Minister of Foreign Affairs Prince Faisal bin Farhan and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Malaysia Dato' Seri Utama Haji Mohamad bin Haji Hasan co-chaired the meeting at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs headquarters in Riyadh on Tuesday. The meeting agreed to enhance coordination and cooperation between the two sides across various fields in a way serving their mutual interests and meet the aspirations of their leaderships. It aligns with the council's overarching objectives of deepening collaboration, interconnectivity, and integration between the two nations through the council and its committees, focusing on areas such as politics, security and defense, energy, economy, investment, education, culture, tourism, and more. At the outset of the meeting, the two sides reviewed their deep-rooted relations and emphasized the importance of continuing to support and develop joint coordination in all areas of bilateral cooperation. They also highlighted the need to establish common positions on bilateral, regional, and international issues of shared concern. Both sides affirmed their commitment to strengthening cooperation and advancing it toward broader horizons to enhance their shared interests. The council chairpersons expressed their satisfaction with the outcomes of the committee meetings, which are expected to strengthen cooperation across all fields and elevate bilateral relations to greater heights. They underscored the importance of sustaining support for the council's activities, its committees, and consistent coordination between the two sides to ensure its effectiveness as an institutional framework for bilateral collaboration. They stressed the necessity of following up on the implementation of recommendations and initiatives by the heads of the council's committees, each within their respective areas, with the support of the council's General Secretariat. At the conclusion of the meeting, the council chairpersons expressed their anticipation for the second council meeting to be scheduled at a mutually agreed time through the General Secretariat. Following the meeting, both sides signed two memoranda of understanding (MoU). The first one is pertained to the mutual exemption from short-term visa requirements for holders of diplomatic, special, or official passports. It was signed by Prince Faisal bin Farhan and Utama Haji Mohamad bin Haji Hasan. The second MoU, which is related to social development, was signed by Deputy Minister of Human Resources Dr. Abdullah Abuthnain and the Malaysian Minister of Foreign Affairs. The meeting was attended by Assistant Minister of Interior Dr. Hisham Al-Falih; Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs for Political Affairs Ambassador Dr. Saud Al-Sati; Undersecretary of the Ministry of Education for International Cooperation Dr. Abdulrahman Al-Amari; Undersecretary of the Saudi Ministry of Defense for Strategic Affairs Salman Al-Harbi; Saudi Ambassador to Malaysia Mesaad Al-Sulaim; and General Supervisor of the Agency for International Relations and Cooperation at the Ministry of Energy Nasser Aldossary. Representatives from the council's committees on Islamic, cultural, and social cooperation were also in attendance.
