Türkiye’s Parliament Speaker Mustafa Şentop met with his Malaysian counterpart Azhar Azizan Harun on Tuesday.
As part of his official contacts in Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia, Şentop first held a one-on-one meeting with his Malaysian counterpart Harun and then between delegations.
After meeting with Harun, Şentop met with the head of the Malaysian Senate, Rais Yatim, and the accompanying delegation.
Şentop expressed his hope that the new legislative period in Malaysia, which started on Oct. 3, is beneficial.
Expressing that it is pleasing that the feeling of trust prevails in bilateral relations, Şentop said that they are of the understanding that the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership established between the two countries includes the improvement of relations between the legislative, executive and judicial bodies.
Expressing that the dialogue and friendly relations between the parliaments should be strengthened in parallel with the relations between the governments, Şentop said that stronger communication between the delegations and the mutual interests of the common agenda in the parliamentary assemblies where the parliaments are represented, especially the Parliamentary Union of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (ISIPAB) and the Inter-Parliamentary Union would also be helpful.
On the other hand, Şentop noted that cooperation between Malaysia and Türkiye on space and satellite technologies could be developed.
In addition, Şentop stated that they attach importance to the developments in the region and other geographies where Muslims live, as well as bilateral relations, and said that they appreciate Malaysia's efforts to deal with the economic and humanitarian crisis, especially after the military coup in Myanmar.
Şentop said that their efforts to stop the genocide attempt against the Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar and to provide humanitarian aid to the Rohingya are extremely valuable.
Drawing attention to the report on the human rights violations against Muslim minorities living in non-ISIPAB countries within the body of ISIPAB, Şentop said: "As Muslim countries, we should continue this kind of work in the coming periods, act in close cooperation on this issue, and a justice and people-centered policy should prevail. It will be in the interest of the whole world, of all humanity, that we strive for it."
Diplomatic relations between Türkiye and Malaysia were established in 1964.
The countries signed a free trade agreement in 2014, which was Türkiye's first with a member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
In 2024, Malaysia and Türkiye will be celebrating their 60th year of diplomatic relations. Both are two modern and progressive nations among the community of nations that have definitive culture, values and geographical locations that epitomize a progressive Muslim country. Both countries have strong political linkages and economic exchanges with increasing people-to-people contacts.
This year is marked by many new developments. The official visit by Malaysian Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob in July and the state visit by his majesty Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah and her majesty Tunku Azizah Aminah Maimunah, the king and queen of Malaysia, to Türkiye in August are symbols of the ever-growing political, economic and cultural relations between Malaysia and Türkiye.