Honoured guests: His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim with Singapore Senior Minister and former prime minister Lee Hsien Loong and his wife Ho Ching. — Bernama
King Charles III also sends congratulations to Ruler
KUALA LUMPUR: The attendance of Sultan of Brunei Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah and King of Bahrain Sheikh Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa at the installation ceremony of His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim as the King of Malaysia is a testament to the close and warm ties that exist between both rulers and His Majesty.
The Sultan of Brunei, who just celebrated his 78th birthday last Monday, arrived at Istana Negara at 9.34am, accompanied by Raja Isteri Pengiran Anak Hajah Saleha.
Sheikh Hamad arrived earlier, at 9.25am, Bernama reported.
The royal guests were greeted on arrival by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and his wife, Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, and Com-munications Minister and chairman of the Special Committee for the Installation Events Fahmi Fadzil and his wife, Azrina Puteri Mohamed Mahyuddin.
Upon arrival, Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah and Sheikh Hamad were each ushered to the Royal Stage in the Palace Square to receive the Royal Salute as their country’s anthems were played.
Singapore Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong and his wife Ho Ching were also in attendance at the invitation of Sultan Ibrahim.
In a message on Facebook earlier, Lee said he last came to Malaysia in 2019.
“I last visited KL in 2019 for the 9th Singapore-Malaysia Leaders’ Retreat, so it’s been a while,” he wrote.
Lee also said he would be meeting Malaysian leaders while he is in the country.
“Will be meeting Malaysian leaders and catching up with old friends during this trip. I thank His Majesty for the invite and look forward to a fruitful visit,” he added.
Britain’s head of state King Charles III also sent his congratulations to Sultan Ibrahim as the newly installed King of Malaysia.
King Charles said that he looked forward to working with Sultan Ibrahim to strengthen the bonds between the people and deepen the cooperation between both nations.
“As Commonwealth partners, the United Kingdom and Malaysia share common values and longstanding links in areas such as education, trade, technology, and defence.
“I hope we can continue to build on all that unites us in the years ahead, including our shared commitment to tackling climate change and safeguarding the natural environment for future generations,” said King Charles.
His Majesty’s message was shared by the British High Commission in Kuala Lumpur on its official Facebook page.
British High Commissioner Ailsa Terry said it was an “absolute honour” for her to be able to attend His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim’s installation at Istana Negara.
“The longstanding ties between the Royals from both our countries and the deep people-to-people links form the foundation of the modern partnership between the United Kingdom and Malay-sia,” she said.
Messages of congratulations to Sultan Ibrahim also came from foreign embassies here.
“Congratulations to His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim, King of Malaysia, on his installation as the 17th King of Malaysia,” said a message from the Embassy of the Republic of Korea in Malaysia.
“Congratulations to His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim, King of Malaysia, on his installation as the 17th King of Malaysia,” said a message from the US embassy.
“Heartfelt congratulations to His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim on the occasion of His Majesty’s installation as the 17th Yang di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia. May the reign be full of success and prosperity!” said the Delegation of the European Union to Malaysia.