New Malaysia PM Anwar in Indonesia on First Foreign Trip

BOGOR, KOMPAS.com - Malaysia's new prime minister met with Indonesia's president Monday, Jan. 9, on his first foreign trip after winning a confidence vote and cementing his mandate last month following an inconclusive election.

Anwar Ibrahim, a long-time opposition leader, was sworn in as the country's 10th prime minister on Nov. 24, 2022, to head a unity government in a shaky alliance with the graft-tainted party of his former political rivals.

He met Indonesian President Joko Widodo for talks at a presidential palace in Bogor, south of the capital Jakarta where he thanked his counterpart for his support after the election.

"This is a bit personal, Mr. President. When I was in a difficult situation, living in uncertainty and suffering, Indonesia welcomed me as a true friend," he said after the meeting.

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Widodo said the world's two biggest exporters of palm oil would boost cooperation on the commodity and work together to battle "discrimination" against the sector, which environmentalists say is stoking deforestation in both countries.

YouTube.com/Sekretariat Presiden Indonesia's President Joko Widodo (right) and Malaysia's Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim (left) shake hand before the pair held a meeting at the Bogor Presidential Palace near Jakarta on Monday, January 9, 2023. Anwar is on his two-day state visit to Indonesia, the first foreign trip after he was sworn in as the country's 10th prime minister on November 24, 2022.

The European Union last month agreed on a new law preventing companies from selling products linked to deforestation.

"We have agreed to strengthen the cooperation through the Council of Palm Oil Producing Countries (CPOPC) to increase the palm oil market," he said.

The Indonesian leader also lauded the interest of Malaysian companies in investing in the country's new capital Nusantara, which is scheduled to open on the island of Borneo next year.

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