NEW YORK: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim today met with his counterparts from Thailand and Iraq on the sideline of the 78th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) here.

It was Anwar's first official engagement with Srettha Thavisin since the Thai property developer became prime minister last month.

The 30-minute meeting was also attended by cabinet ministers from both sides.

"Besides discussing ways to strengthen our bilateral ties, we also spoke on various issues, including borders, peace process in Southern Thai and other regional issues of mutual interest," said Anwar.

Meanwhile, during the meeting with his Iraqi counterpart Mohammed Shia' Al Sudani, the matters discussed include ways to further strengthen their ties and explore new areas of cooperation.

Anwar also told Mohammed Shia that Malaysia will reopen its embassy in Baghdad, Iraq, which has been closed for the past 20 years.

Iraq remains Malaysia's sixth largest trading partner and the seventh largest source of imports among the West Asian countries, with total trade last year valued at RM4.68 billion (US$1.07 billion), an increase of 24.3 per cent compared to RM3.76 billion (US$0.91 billion) in 2021.

Anwar also spent some time meeting with United States President Joe Biden's climate envoy, John Kerry, who was the US Secretary of State from 2013 to 2017 under the administration of President Barack Obama.

Among the topics discussed were the environment, renewable energy and global warming which is causing massive effects worldwide.

"I also expressed my desire to continue working with the US on the transition to renewable energy, methane gas emissions reduction, climate finance and technology," said Anwar who is also the Finance Minister.

Meanwhile, Anwar also attended a discussion session with members of the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), a non-partisan independent think tank that promotes understanding of international relations and foreign policy.

"During the session, I listened to and shared Malaysia's policies and perspectives on international relations, the global stage, and geopolitics with this think tank," he said, adding that he appreciated their invitation and hoped that such a discussion could continue in the future.

-- BERNAMA