Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim will arrive in Ashgabat on June 18 for a two-day official visit. Malaysian Ambassador to Turkmenistan Mohd Suhaimi Ahmad Tayuddin announced this in an interview with the Malaysian newspaper New Straits Times. The visit is being carried out at the invitation of the President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedov and is a reciprocal gesture for the Turkmen leader’s official visit to Malaysia in December 2024.
According to the diplomat, the main expected outcome of the visit will be an agreement that will ensure the continued presence of Malaysia’s state-owned oil company, Petronas, in the country. “The agreement will allow them to continue operating in Turkmenistan for another 20-25 years,” the ambassador stated. Petronas has been operating in the country since 1996, investing approximately 11,8 billion USD during that time. Last year, the company signed a new agreement with the Turkmen government and its partner, XRG, the international investment arm of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company.
The official program of negotiations is scheduled for June 19 and includes a meeting with President Serdar Berdimuhamedov, the signing of a joint statement, and a number of agreements and memoranda of understanding. The parties will also hold a Turkmen-Malaysian forum to mark the 30th anniversary of cooperation in the oil and gas industry.
In addition to energy, the talks will also discuss prospects for cooperation in transport, logistics, agriculture, halal production, as well as digital technologies and artificial intelligence.
Bilateral trade between the two countries amounted to approximately 17,7 million USD in 2024. This visit is Anwar Ibrahim’s first as prime minister and the fifth in the history of bilateral relations at the Malaysian head of government level.
