Joint Statement by Egypt and Malaysia

1.   On the occasion of the 65th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Malaysia and the Arab Republic of Egypt, and upon the invitation of His Excellency Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, President of Egypt, the Honourable Dato’ Seri Anwar Ibrahim, Prime Minister of Malaysia undertook an official visit to Egypt from 9 to 12 November 2024. The two leaders held talks on 10 November 2024, where they engaged in in-depth discussions on bilateral ties and exchanged perspectives on pressing global issues of concern.

2.   The official visit of Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim to Egypt is his second visit to the country as Prime Minister of Malaysia. It is the culmination of the ever-strengthening, meaningful and mutually rewarding ties between the two brotherly countries. Leveraging on this new phase of closer friendship and cooperation, both leaders have agreed to elevate bilateral relations between both countries to reach the level of strategic partnership in the near future, as a catalyst to ensuring both countries’ further progress and development as well as to enable the synergy of efforts towards creating a stable, just and equitable world.

3.   Both leaders agreed to further strengthen political relations, by increasing the frequency of high-level exchanges between the two countries. In this vein, Malaysia is set to host the second Malaysia-Egypt Joint Commission Meeting (JCM) and Bilateral Consultation (BC) at the earliest convenience and at a mutually agreed time.

4.   Both leaders recognized the potential of their respective economies and expressed confidence in the continued growth of trade value and two-way investment activities. They acknowledged ongoing efforts to deepen business-led cooperation to intensify trade activities in the areas of digital economy, agro-commodities, renewable energy infrastructure development, transportation and maritime domain, as well as manufacturing and semiconductor sectors between both countries. The leaders highlighted that the two countries’ comprehensive and resilient trade and investment relationships are based on the common interest in free, fair and open trade. The leaders also agreed that the ASEAN FTAs and COMESA would continue to deliver benefits to Malaysia and Egypt, respectively.

5.   The leaders recognized the longstanding and robust defence and security relationship between the two countries. Both sides concurred on the need to undertake necessary measures to enhance and expand cooperation in these areas. This includes, among other efforts, regular dialogue and consultations, information sharing, joint training, counter-terrorism initiatives, and addressing transnational crimes, such as cybersecurity threats and cryptocurrency fraud. The establishment of the Defence Attaché Office in Cairo in May 2024 reaffirmed Malaysia’s commitment to deepening cooperation and continued efforts to strengthen further the defence cooperation with Egypt.

6.   Both leaders underscored the importance of maintaining and building higher education and training cooperation and support between the two countries. In this vein, Malaysia is pleased with Egypt’s gesture of friendship in granting scholarship opportunities for Malaysian students to benefit from further studies in Egyptian institutions of higher learning. Both leaders also discussed ways to diversify collaboration between respective Ministries to address issues and advance mutually beneficial arrangements.

7.   The leaders acknowledged the benefits of cultural exchanges between Malaysia and Egypt that will promote friendship and foster stronger people-to-people relations between the two countries. Both leaders also agreed that Malaysia and Egypt would continue to be popular destinations for students and experts to advance their studies and research in cultural knowledge and will work together to maintain the positive momentum of cooperation.

8.   On ASEAN, Malaysia acknowledged Egypt’s accession to the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia in 2016 and has been demonstrating the desire to advance its relations with ASEAN to further promote peace, stability and cooperation with ASEAN member states. As the Chair of ASEAN 2025, Malaysia expressed its readiness to work closely with Egypt to promote ASEAN-Egypt relations. Malaysia also encouraged Egypt to advance its engagement with ASEAN, through its important role as well as the founding member of the African Union.

9.   On the situation in the Middle East, both leaders agreed on the need to advocate for peace and security to prevail in the region. They addressed the deteriorating humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip and condemned the Israeli war on Gaza. Malaysia also expressed appreciation to Egypt for facilitating the delivery of much-needed humanitarian aid from Malaysia to Palestinians in Gaza. Both leaders reaffirmed the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination, including the right to their independent State of Palestine and urged the UN Security Council to reconsider Palestine’s application for full membership, in line with Resolution A/RES/ES10/23 adopted by the UN General Assembly on 10 May 2024.

10.   Both Leaders strongly condemn Israel’s continued violations of international law, international humanitarian law, and international human rights law in its military operations which also violates the sovereignty territorial integrity of Lebanon, through its continued incursions in Lebanon and airstrikes, which resulted in the loss of over two thousand innocent civilian lives and the immense damage of infrastructure. A ceasefire should be reached immediately to stop this humanitarian catastrophe. Both Leaders express their full support for the full implementation of UNSC resolution 1701 in order to safeguard peace and security in the region.

11.   Both leaders affirmed their commitment to step up efforts to tackle issues related to climate change. They agreed for a balanced approach between climate ambition and sustainable development.

12.   With regard to BRICS, both leaders welcomed the endorsement by BRICS Leaders of the Modalities of BRICS Partner Country Category at the 16th BRICS Summit in Kazan, Russian Federation on 23 October 2024. Malaysia hopes to work closely with Egypt and other BRICS Members towards its full membership in BRICS and to advance the Global South Agenda.

13.   In establishing the crucial framework to initiate, and execute a more dynamic and active cooperation in various fields, Malaysia and the Arab Republic of Egypt look forward to expediting the conclusion of several pending Memoranda of Understanding and agreements. During the visit, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi witnessed the signing and exchange of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Department of Islamic Development Malaysia (JAKIM) and Egypt’s Ministry of Awqaf (Endowments) in the field of Islamic affairs.

14.   Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim thanked President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, the Egyptian Government and the Egyptian people for facilitating the successful visit and looks forward to reciprocating Egypt’s warm and friendly hospitality through a state visit by President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi to Malaysia at a mutually convenient time in the future.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Presidency of the Arab Republic of Egypt.