KUALA LUMPUR: Bilateral cooperation between Malaysia and Russia will be strengthened through the two countries' Joint Commission Meeting on Economic, Scientific, Technical and Cultural Cooperation (JC-ESTC) to be held in Malaysia this year, says Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abdul Kadir (pic).

The Higher Education Minister said the meeting in November would, among other things, discuss proposals to expand scholarship programmes and developments in various initiatives under the JC-ESTC.

"Special focus will also be given to preparations for the Malaysia-Russia Mineral Resources Dialogue and the Higher Education Forum, two key platforms to be held concurrently with the JC-ESTC Meeting.

"These events are expected to bring together industry leaders, academics and researchers from both countries to enhance bilateral cooperation,” he said in a Facebook statement on Wednesday (June 4).

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The meeting follows Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s official visit to Russia last month, during which he tasked several ministries, including Higher Education, with following up.

Zambry said the plans were discussed during a courtesy call by Russian Ambassador to Malaysia Naiyl Latypov on Tuesday (June 3) evening.

"I believe that cooperation between Malaysia and Russia will continue to be explored to build more networks across various fields, thereby creating greater opportunities and successes for the people of both nations.

"The strong commitment shown by the Russian government, which also recognises Malaysia’s education system as one of the best hubs in the region, underscores the need for local institutions of higher learning to continuously improve their performance,” Zambry added. – Bernama