SUBANG: Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah of Brunei arrived here on Wednesday (Aug 2) to begin a three-day state visit to Malaysia.
The special aircraft carrying the Sultan, who was accompanied by his consort Raja Isteri Pengiran Anak Saleha, as well as top government officials, landed at the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) base here at 5pm.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and his wife, Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, along with Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abdul Kadir were on hand to receive the arrival of the royal couple, as well as the delegation from Brunei.
Moments upon arrival, Sultan Hasanal Bolkiah inspected a guard of honour mounted by officers and personnel from the First Battalion of the Royal Ranger Regiment.
On Thursday (Aug 3), the Sultan will be accorded a state welcome at Istana Negara before holding a meeting with the Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah.
Al-Sultan Abdullah will also host a state banquet in honour of the visiting Brunei Sultan and his delegation.
In the afternoon, Sultan Hasanal Bolkiah is scheduled to have a meeting with Anwar at the Seri Perdana in Putrajaya and witness the signing of several bilateral instruments between Malaysia and Brunei.
Before leaving home on Friday, the Brunei Sultan is also scheduled to attend a dinner hosted by the Prime Minister at the Malaysian Petroleum Club located in the iconic Petronas Twin Towers.
According to Wisma Putra’s statement, the state visit coincides with the 24th Malaysia-Brunei Darussalam Annual Leaders’ Consultation (ALC) which will be attended by both the Sultan of Brunei and Anwar.
It said as the highest bilateral mechanism between Malaysia and Brunei Darussalam, ALC will provide the opportunity for both leaders to review the progress of bilateral cooperation and discuss outstanding issues as well as exchange views on regional and international issues of mutual interest.
The Brunei Sultan’s visit will further strengthen the longstanding ties and multifaceted cooperation between the two countries and partners in Asean.
In 2022, Brunei Darussalam was Malaysia's 26th largest trading partner and the 6th largest within ASEAN with a total trade amounting to RM13.22bil (US$2.98bil), an increase of 68.4 per cent compared to the recorded value in 2021.- Bernama
