Malaysian Foreign Minister Dato’ Seri Utama Haji Mohamad Bin Haji Hasan pays courtesy call to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. at Malacañang on Monday, July 1. | Photo from PPA Pool
MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Monday met with Malaysian Foreign Minister Dato’ Seri Utama Haji Mohamad Bin Haji Hasan in Malacañan Palace.
Hasan paid a courtesy call on Marcos over a year after Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim visited the Philippines in March 2023.
Marcos also recently made his state visit to Malaysia and had an audience with His Majesty Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’yatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah Ibni Almarhum Sultan Haji Ahmad Shah Al-Musta’in Billah who was then Yang di-Pertuan Agong XVI [King] of Malaysia in July 2023.
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“Welcome, welcome to the Philippines. Thank you for finding time to visit with us while you are traveling around Asean (Association of Southeast Asian Nations). So, I hope you will have a productive visit,” Marcos told the Malaysian foreign minister.
According to the Presidential Communications Office (PCO), the two highlighted during their talk the diplomatic relations between the Philippines and Malaysia which started in 1959.
Malaysian Foreign Minister Dato’ Seri Utama Haji Mohamad Bin Haji Hasan pays courtesy call to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. at Malacañang on Monday, July 1. | Photo from PPA Pool
The PCO also said Marcos acknowledged the significant role Malaysia has played in the development and peace process in Mindanao.
Marcos told Hasan that the Philippines is “looking forward to keeping itself in constant communication with Malaysia on current developments.”
The PCO said that in 2023, the Philippines’ total trade with Malaysia amounted to $8.1 billion — with exports to Malaysia at $2.18 billion and imports at $5.92 billion.
Malaysia ranked as the Philippines’ 9th major trading partner, 11th export market, 8th import supplier, and 16th among the Philippines’ top investment partners in 2023, with total approved investments amounting to US$13.17 million.
An estimated 950,043 Filipinos live in Malaysia (Peninsular Malaysia, Sabah, Sarawak, Labuan) — 628,450 of which are estimated to be undocumented, and 321,593 are considered temporary migrants, including those on work and visit visas.