Tokyo: Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus today congratulated former Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad ahead of his birth centenary, which will be celebrated in July. Mahathir, who will turn 100 on July 10, called on the Chief Adviser at Imperial Hotel in Tokyo on the sidelines of the Nikkei Forum Future of Asia to revisit the memories they shared during their decades-long friendship.
According to Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha, the Chief Adviser wished Mahathir a happy 100th birthday in advance. Mahathir served as Malaysian Prime Minister for 24 years from 1981 to 2003 and again from 2018 to 2020. During their 40-minute-long meeting, they discussed issues of mutual interest, including Bangladesh’s desire to become an ASEAN member and the Rohingya repatriation issue.
Bangladesh, aiming to become a full ASEAN member, applied to be a sectoral dialogue partner several years ago. Malaysia, currently chairing the South East Asian grouping, was asked for support in this endeavor. The Chief Adviser praised Malaysia for providing employment to hundreds of thousands of Bangladeshis and emphasized the country’s significance in the lives of many Bangladeshis.
Mahathir acknowledged the presence of Bangladeshi entrepreneurs in Malaysia and highlighted their success. He also reflected on Malaysia’s progress due to his Look East policy and suggested Bangladesh adopt similar strategies.
The Chief Adviser expressed Bangladesh’s interest in enhancing trade and bilateral relations with Indonesia, a country less familiar to the Bangladeshi populace compared to Malaysia. Prof Yunus further requested Mahathir to leverage his influence to help resolve the Rohingya crisis and extended an invitation for him to visit Bangladesh.
Mahathir responded that he would consider visiting Bangladesh, contingent upon his physicians’ approval, given his health-related travel restrictions.