Malaysia's Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said on May 10 that he is ready to continue strengthening the close relations between Malaysia and Singapore under the leadership of Singapore's next prime minister, Lawrence Wong.

In a Facebook post on May 10, Anwar said that he had received a call from Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong after the inauguration of the Malaysia Artificial Intelligence Nexus 2024.

PM Lee officially announced over the phone call that he will hand over the reins to DPM Lawrence Wong in a week.

Expansion of close relations

Anwar said PM Lee also expressed his hopes to see Malaysia and Singapore's close relations expanding under the country's new leadership.

He said: "I welcome PM Lee's wishes and am ready to continue to strengthen the relationship between Malaysia and Singapore under the Lawrence administration."

"I also invited PM Lee and Ho Ching to come to Malaysia in the near future," he added.

Reflecting on his diplomatic relations with PM Lee and his wife Ho Ching, Anwar said he and his wife Wan Azizah Wan Ismail deeply appreciate the close personal ties they have together.

He said their conversations in every meeting always involves a friend-to-friend approach.

"Good luck friend. May a brilliant future continue to await Malaysia and Singapore."

In response to media queries, the press secretary to PM Lee confirmed that the two prime ministers spoke on May 10, adding:

“They reaffirmed the close relationship between Singapore and Malaysia. Both leaders share a close friendship and have worked together well to strengthen bilateral cooperation. They expressed hope that both sides will continue to work constructively on mutually beneficial cooperation.”

You can see Anwar's post here: