PUTRAJAYA, 16 December - Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra's two-day official visit to Malaysia aims to strengthen bilateral relations and foster regional cooperation.

Paetongtarn and Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, are scheduled to attend the 7th Malaysia-Thailand Annual Consultation (AC) and subsequently witness the exchange of several Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) as well as cooperation agreements in various fields.

Paetongtarn's visit also reflects a shared commitment to achieving "Peace and Shared Prosperity" for the benefit of the people of both countries.

Her visit will also focus on advancing cooperation in infrastructure development, trade and economic growth as well as exploring potential for new collaborations.

The visit follows the 15th Meeting of the Joint Commission for Bilateral Cooperation and the 6th Meeting of the Joint Development Strategy for the Border Area between Malaysia and Thailand, which was chaired by the Foreign Ministers of both countries in Kuala Lumpur on 6 August.

The visit is also part of the exchange of visits at the leader’s level this year, following the working visit of Anwar to Sungai Golok, Thailand and Rantau Panjang on 3 August this year.

Thailand remains a key trading partner for Malaysia, ranking as its sixth-largest globally and second-largest within ASEAN in 2023, with bilateral trade valued at US$24.83 billion (RM113.16 billion).

Earlier, Paetongtarn was accorded an official welcoming ceremony at Perdana Putra Complex, here, this morning.

Paetongtarn, who arrived yesterday for her maiden visit to Malaysia after assuming office in August this year, was received by Anwar upon her arrival at the venue at 9 am.

She inspected a guard of honour mounted by three officers and 103 members of the First Battalion of the Royal Ranger Regiment (Ceremonial).

Also present were Deputy Prime Ministers Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof, Cabinet ministers, foreign diplomats and senior government officials.