MH370: Malaysia to host meeting with China, Australia in April - Liow

A tripartite ministerial meeting between Malaysia, Australia and China will be held here next month to discuss the further search phase for the missing Malaysia Airlines (MAS) Flight MH370.

Transport Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai said the Malaysian MH370 working group would first hold its meeting in advance to finalise the agenda to be discussed during the tripartite ministerial meeting later.

"The date for the tripartite meeting has yet to be fixed," he told reporters after attending the Tunku Abdul Rahman University College (TARC) Education Foundation Donors and Long Service Award Ceremony here, today.

Flight MH370 dropped off radar screens on March 8 last year as it flew from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing with 227 passengers and 12 crew on board.

The Boeing 777 aircraft has yet to be found, even after an exhaustive search in the southern Indian Ocean where it is believed to have gone down after veering off course.

On Jan 29 this year, the government declared the disappearance of the flight an accident and that all passengers and crew on board were presumed to have lost their lives.

The search for the aircraft in the Indian Ocean has covered about 40 percent of the search area of 60,000 sq km, while about 208,000 sq km has been mapped to date.

Meanwhile, Liow, who is also the MCA President and Chairman of the TARC Board of Governors, said the institution would begin its donation drive to collect RM30 million in its effort to build a student centre at its main campus.

During the ceremony, a total of 113 staff members who have dedicated 25 years of service to TARC received their token of appreciation from Liow.