By IANS,
New Delhi: Taking their bilateral ties closer, India and Malaysia Wednesday signed an extradition treaty and other pacts to scale up their cooperation in areas ranging from education to trade.
Pitching for expanded economic ties across sectors, the two countries also agreed to conclude a free trade agreement (FTA) by the end of 2010.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his Malaysian counterpart Mohammed Najib Tun Abdul Razak, who arrived here Tuesday, held talks on a wide range of bilateral, regional and global issues.
Expanded cooperation in countering terrorism, more collaboration in knowledge industries and fast-tracking negotiations on a FTA figured prominently in the discussions.
After the talks, the two sides signed a clutch of pacts, including an extradition treaty, a memorandum of understanding on higher education and another pact between Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) and Securities Commission of Malaysia.
The extradition treaty, which the two sides have been negotiating for years, was signed by External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna and his Malaysian counterpart Anifah bin Haji Aman.
Najib’s decision to visit India, in the first year of his government, soon after visiting China, underlines a shift in perception of India in Malaysia and other Southeast Asian countries and their desire to forge a closer relationship with India.
India is increasingly seen in Malaysia as a source of quality technology and a hub of innovations in bioscience, IT and education.