Manama: Saudi Arabia and Malaysia have announced the establishment of the Global Centre for Peace.

The King Salman Centre for International Peace will be set up in Malaysia in collaboration with the Intellectual Warfare Centre, Ministry of Defence, Saudi Arabia, Security and Defence Centre, Ministry of Defence of Malaysia, the Islamic Science University of Malaysia, and the Muslim World League. They will coordinate to complete the necessary arrangements to launch the centre within 90 days, the joint statement issued on Wednesday at the end of the state visit of King Salman Bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud said.

The two countries agreed to strengthen their military cooperation by developing areas of joint training and exercise, and exchange of military experiences. They also stressed the need to strengthen and enhance trade relations and cooperation in investment between the two countries, and to explore opportunities in light of Saudi Arabia Vision 2030, the statement added.

The two countries said they welcomed the participation of Saudi Aramco in the Petronas Malaysia project to develop and own a giant refining and petrochemical integrated complex in Johor, which will contribute significantly to the economic partnership between the two countries and to promote their cooperation in field of energy, the statement said.

During King Salman’s four-day visit, Saudi Arabia and Malaysia signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in the field of scientific and educational cooperation, which would pave the way for further cooperation in the areas of knowledge, experience exchange and the transfer of technology.

Another MoU in the field of Labour and Human Resources is expected to intensify training programmes and exchange of experiences in the field of occupational safety and health, information and statistics related to the labour market in both countries.

They also signed an MoU on trade and investment cooperation, and another to boost cooperation the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) and the Malaysia news agency (Bernama), the statement said.

King Salman arrived on Sunday in Malaysia, the first leg of his multi-nation tour of Asia.

Talks between the two countries were “constructive and fruitful” and focused on the prospects and ways to develop bilateral relations and to intensify cooperation in political, economic, cultural, military and security areas.

The talks also reviewed the regional and international issues of the common interest. The two sides agreed to intensify communication and cooperation between government officials and the private sector in both countries to deepen and expand bilateral relations.

Saudi Arabia and Malaysia also agreed “on the need to intensify and concert the Islamic world’s efforts to confront extremism, reject sectarianism and move the Islamic world towards a better future in line of objectives and purposes of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation to achieve international peace and security.”

“The two sides agreed that the terrorism phenomenon should not be linked to any race, colour or religion. This was most the important issue that was discussed and the two sides agreed on the need to intensify the joint efforts to combat terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, whatever its origin,” the statement said.

“The two sides expressed serious concerns over the Iranian interference in the internal affairs of countries in the region, stressed the need for Iran’s commitment to the principle of good neighbourliness and the need to respect the sovereignty of states.”

On the situation in Syria, the two countries “stressed the necessity of finding a solution based on the Geneva 1 statement and UN Security Council Resolution 2254.” They also underscored the importance of providing humanitarian aid and relief works for Syrian refugees inside and outside Syria.

“The two sides also stressed the importance of maintaining Yemen’s unity, independence and sovereignty, and the importance of the political solution to the crisis of Yemen based on the Gulf Initiative and the outputs of the national dialogue, and UN Security Council Resolution 2216. The two sides affirmed their support for the legitimate authority in Yemen and the efforts taken in this regard, and to facilitate humanitarian access to all areas of Yemen.”

On Tuesday, King Salman urged universities in the Islamic world to ensure the readiness and qualification of the young generation, explaining that the knowledge gleaned could be shared for the benefit of the wider world community, the Malaysian news agency Bernama reported.

Youths are the beacon of hope and the future of the Muslim community and universities have a great responsibility to prepare them for the challenging tasks ahead, King Salman said in his acceptance speech after being conferred the Honorary Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Political Science and Lifetime Outstanding Achievement Award by the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM) at a special convocation.

King Salman said that Islam had the right tools to enable the nation to rise again as a civilisation.

“Education is a means to achieve our visions of progress and civilisational development in the fields of knowledge and sciences,” he said.

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