PM, Rutte meet in Putrajaya for bilateral talks

PUTRAJAYA: Malaysia's Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim today received a courtesy call from his Dutch counterpart Mark Rutte at Seri Perdana here as Malaysia and Netherlands continue to strengthen bilateral relations.

Rutte arrived in Malaysia yesterday for a two-day working visit, his second visit to this country after his maiden trip in 2014.

Rutte was received by Anwar upon arrival at the Prime Minister's official residence at almost noon before the two leaders proceeded for bilateral talks, during which they discussed bilateral relations between Malaysia and the Netherlands and exchanged views on regional and international issues of mutual concern.

After an almost-an-hour meeting, Anwar hosted a luncheon in honour of Rutte's working visit to Malaysia.

In 2022, the Netherlands is Malaysia's 14th largest trading partner and the second largest in the European Union (EU) with a trade volume of RM48.04 billion (US$10.93 billion), an increase of 33.4 per cent compared to RM36.01 billion (US$8.68 billion) in 2021.

The Netherlands is also the largest importer of Malaysian palm oil among EU countries with 732,324.54 tonnes.

-- BERNAMA