Bangladesh has invited Malaysian companies to invest in its energy sector, including oil and gas exploration in the Bay of Bengal, extraction of untapped mineral resources such as coal and limestone, and the renewable energy transition.
According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, both countries also encouraged cooperation between national energy companies and private sector stakeholders. They aim to build long-term partnerships that support energy security, sustainability and economic growth in both nations.
Bangladesh and Malaysia recognised the need to strengthen energy cooperation as a key pillar of their bilateral economic relations.
They also highlighted the importance of fully utilising the existing memorandum of understanding (MoU) on cooperation in liquefied natural gas (LNG) supply, LNG infrastructure and petroleum products. The two sides also stressed direct bilateral LNG discussions between PETRONAS and PetroBangla, according to a joint statement shared by the ministry.
Prime Minister Tarique Rahman and Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim praised the long-standing defence cooperation between the two countries. They said the partnership is supported by regular high-level military visits, training programmes and goodwill naval port calls, according to UNB.
Both leaders committed to fully operationalising the MoU on defence cooperation. They also agreed to broaden strategic collaboration in military science, technical expertise and defence industry partnerships.
They looked forward to holding the bilateral Joint Committee on Defence Cooperation (JCDC) to develop a structured defence roadmap.
The two sides emphasised stronger defence capacity-building through training programmes, including mutual seat allocations at their respective National Defence Colleges and Command and Staff Colleges.
They also reaffirmed commitment to United Nations peacekeeping operations through joint tactical exercises, pre-deployment training cooperation, and exchange of expertise to address complex global security challenges.
Both countries further pledged to strengthen cooperation in combating terrorism and violent extremism. They agreed on intelligence sharing, information exchange, capacity-building, training and sharing best practices.
At the invitation of Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, Prime Minister Tarique Rahman paid an official visit to Malaysia on Monday.
This marks Tarique Rahman’s first official foreign visit since assuming office on 17 February 2026.
Since establishing diplomatic relations in 1972, Bangladesh and Malaysia have developed strong bilateral ties based on mutual respect, shared values and common goals for regional peace and prosperity.
During the visit, Tarique Rahman was given an official welcome ceremony at the Perdana Putra Complex in Putrajaya.
The two leaders held official talks on Bangladesh-Malaysia relations and exchanged views on regional and international issues of mutual interest.
They expressed strong commitment to further elevate bilateral relations between the two countries.
Anwar Ibrahim also hosted an official luncheon in honour of Tarique Rahman.
The visit also saw the exchange of several bilateral documents aimed at strengthening cooperation between Bangladesh and Malaysia.
