Kuala Lumpur (VNA) – Malaysia and Russia have agreed to strengthen economic cooperation, with a focus on high-potential sectors such as halal industry and agriculture, following Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister Fadillah Yusof’s working visit to Russia.
Speaking at a press conference on June 28, Fadillah noted that bilateral trade remained modest in 2024, totaling 2.48 billion USD and ranking Russia ninth among Malaysia’s European partners. Key Malaysian exports include electronics, machinery, and processed food.
He encouraged Russian companies to invest in strategic sectors in Malaysia, including aerospace, agri-tech, energy, ICT, digital economy, Islamic finance, and halal production. He also proposed joint research in fertilisers, pesticides, agricultural engineering, and food technology.
In education, Fadillah expressed his hope that Russia will expand scholarship offerings to Malaysian students in emerging fields such as artificial intelligence, data science, and information technology.
On financial transactions, Malaysia pledged to facilitate smoother processes through relevant agencies, including its central bank, in response to concerns raised by the Russian side.
Russia also committed to supporting Malaysia’s nuclear energy ambitions under its National Energy Transition Roadmap. Fadillah praised Russia’s expertise and revealed discussions with Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexey Overchuk and Rosatom CEO Alexey Likhachev on potential collaboration in workforce training and power grid modernization.
Malaysia is seriously exploring nuclear energy as a long-term strategy for energy security and views the recent visit as an opportunity to better understand safety, technology, and operations of nuclear power facilities./.
