India-Malaysia Relations

India established diplomatic relations with the Federation of Malaya (predecessor state of Malaysia) in 1957.

India is represented in Malaysia through the High Commission of India based in Kuala Lumpur. Malaysia is represented in India through their High Commission in New Delhi and Consulates General in Mumbai and Chennai.

India and Malaysia have traditionally been close and friendly. There have been regular Summit level exchanges and meetings, the most recent of which were the visits by the then Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh to Malaysia from 26 to 28 October 2010 and, earlier the same year, the visit to India in January 2010 of Malaysia’s Prime Minister Mohd Najib. Foreign Ministers of both countries head the Joint Commission, which held its 5th meeting in Kuala Lumpur on 3rd May 2011. Dato’ Seri Mohd Najib Tun Razak, Prime Minister of Malaysia visited India on December 19-20, 2012 to attend the ASEAN-India Commemorative Summit held at New Delhi. During his visit he also had a bilateral meeting with the then Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh, and discussed the entire gamut of our bilateral relations.

Other high level Ministerial visits from India since 2010 include those by Deputy Chairman, Planning Commission in September 2010, the Minister of Road Transport and Highways in December 2010, the Minister of Commerce and Industry in February 2011 to sign the Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA), the External Affairs Minister of India in May 2011, the Minister of New and Renewable Energy in September 2011, the MOS (Textiles) in November 2011, the Minister of Overseas Indian Affairs in February 2012, the Minister of State for Finance in July 2012, the Minister of State for Road Transport & Highways in November, 2012, Minister of Overseas Indian Affairs in December 2012, Minister of Agriculture & Food Processing Industries in September 2013 and Minister of Minority Affairs on 3-5 February 2014.

The 3rd Foreign Office Consultations at Secretary level were held in Putrajaya on 12th March 2012.

As for visits from Malaysia to India, Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin paid an official visit to India (Mumbai, Delhi and Chennai) from 8 to 13 March 2011. He paid a courtesy call on Prime Minister and met External Affairs Minister, Minister of Road Transport and Highways and Minister of HRD. Malaysian Minister for Science, Technology and Innovation visited India from 21 to 22 February 2011; Minister of Health on 4 March 2011; Minister for International Trade and Industry from 2 to 4 March 2011; the Minister of Finance II in October 2011; the Deputy Foreign Minister (for the Delhi Dialogue) in February 2012; the Minister for Plantation Industries and Commodities from 5-8 June 2012; the Minister for Green Technology, Energy and Water from 7-8 November 2012; the Minister of International Trade and Industry from 12-15 December, 2012; Deputy Foreign Minister (for the Delhi Dialogue-V) in February 2013; Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat, Malaysia, YB Tan Sri Datuk Seri Panglima Pandikar Amin Haji Mulia, (working visit to India and meeting with Smt. Meera Kumar, the then Speaker of Lok Sabha) on 28-30 July 2013; the Minister of Foreign Affairs YB Dato’ Sri Anifah Haji Aman, (to attend the 11th Asia- Europe Meeting Foreign Ministers’ Meeting) on 11-12 November 2013 in New Delhi; Datuk Seri G. Palanivel, Minister of Natural Resources and Environment as Chief Guest at the 12th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas in New Delhi on 8-9 January 2014. Dato’ Seri Utama S. Samy Vellu, Special Envoy for Infrastructure (India & South Asia), PM’s Department, Deputy Minister for Education Mr. P. Kamalanathan and Deputy Minister for Youth & Sports Mr. M. Saravanan also participated in the PBD, January 2014; and Minister of International Trade and Industry to Bangalore and Chennai on January 27-30, 2014. Deputy Foreign Minister visited India on March 6-7 2014 to participate in the Delhi Dialogue VI.

Prime Minister’s Visit to Malaysia: During the visit of the then Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh, to Malaysia from 26 to 28 October 2010, India and Malaysia have agreed to work on a Framework for Strategic Partnership, which envisions development of a multi-faceted relationship with a view to elevate bilateral relations to the level of a long term and strategic partnership. The first-ever India-Malaysia CEOs Forum was jointly launched by both the PMs. The PM delivered the ‘Khazanah Global Lecture 2010” at Putrajaya International Convention Centre on 27 October 2010. Both the PMs also inaugurated the ‘Little India’ project in Brickfields. Following six documents were signed during the visit:

 Agreement towards implementing Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) between India and Malaysia on 1st July 2010;  MoU on Cooperation in the field of Traditional Systems of Indian Medicine  MoU on Cooperation in the field of Tourism  MoU on Cooperation in the field of IT & Services  Cultural Exchange Programme (CEP) and  Agreement between CSIR of India and UNIK of Malaysia.

Both countries also agreed to set up a Joint Working Group on Counter- Terrorism.

Both governments have also completed other enabling frameworks. A bilateral Extradition Treaty was signed in January 2010. A bilateral Treaty on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters was signed in March 2012. A revised Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement was signed in May 2012. A Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation and Mutual Assistance in Custom Matters was signed in New Delhi on 13th June 2013, and a MoU on Cooperation in the field of Public Administration and Governance was signed on 25 November 2013.

Defence & Security Cooperation:

India-Malaysia defence relations have steadily grown over the years. A MOU on Defence Cooperation was signed in 1993. The Malaysian Defence Minister Dato Seri Mohd Najib (now PM) had visited India in 2006 and the Indian Defence Minister visited Malaysia in January 2008. Malaysia-Indian Defence Cooperation meetings at the level of Defence Secretary are held regularly; the 10th meeting of the India- Malaysia Defence Cooperation Committee (MIDCOM) was held at New Delhi on 21 Jun 2013, co-chaired by Dato’ Sri Dr Haji Ismail bin Haji Ahmad, Secretary General Ministry of Defence Malaysia and Shri RK Mathur, Defence Secretary, Ministry of Defence India. The Staff Talks between the three Services are being held on annual basis: the 4th Army Staff talks were held in India in October 2013; 5th Naval Staff Talks were held in India in Jun 2013; and 6th Air Staff talks were held in Malaysia in December 2013. Service Chiefs from both countries regularly exchange visits; India’s Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal NAK Browne, PVSM, AVSM, VM, ADC visited Malaysia in February 2012 and Malaysia’s Chiefs of Army and Navy both visited India in April 2012. The Indian Chief of Naval Staff Admiral DK Joshi, PVSM, AVSM, YSM, VSM, ADC visited Malaysia in September 2013 and the Chief of Royal Malaysian Air Force General Tan Sri Dato Sri Rodzali bin Daud visited India in November 2013. An IAF Training Team was deployed in Malaysia to train Malaysian pilots on the SU-30 MKM aircraft for two-and-a-half years from February 2008 to September 2010. Indian Naval Ships and Indian Coast Guard Ships regularly make port calls in Malaysia; and Malaysian Ships make port calls in India. Both sides exchange naval ships and delegations to the bi-annual LIMA (Malaysia), DSA (Malaysia), MILAN (India), DEFEXPO (India) and AEROINDIA regional events. India is also participating in the Cooperative Mechanism on the Straits of Malacca and Singapore (SOMS) and has contributed to two of the six IMO Projects (Project 1 and Project 4) for enhancement of navigational safety and environmental protection in the Straits.

Disappearance of MH 370 : Following the news of disappearance of Malaysian Airlines flight MH 370 from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing on March 8, 2014, India extended all necessary assistance to the Malaysian authorities and deployed six ships and five aircrafts initially to undertake search operations in Bay of Bengal region and thereafter deployed search and rescue aircraft namely C130J and P8i in Subang Airport, Malaysia to assist in search operations. Five passengers in the flight were Indian nationals and the High Commission of India had provided them necessary assistance to the families of the five passengers when they had come to Kuala Lumpur.

Economic and Commercial Cooperation:

Economic and commercial relations are emerging as the mainstay of the bilateral relationship. Malaysia is the third largest trading partner for India within ASEAN, and India is the largest trading partner for Malaysia from among the countries of the South, excluding ASEAN and China.

With the coming-into-force of the India-Malaysia Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) from 1 July 2011 the bilateral economic engagement is expected to get a further fillip. The Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) is a single undertaking covering goods, services, investment and other areas of cooperation. It was formally signed on 18 February 2011 in Putrajaya during the visit of Commerce and Industry Minister. The first-ever India-Malaysia CEOs Forum, comprising 18 CEOs from both sides, was jointly launched on 27 October 2010 by the Prime Ministers of India and Malaysia to develop enhanced partnership and cooperation at the business level. The Forum had already held six meetings, the last meeting at Bangalore on January 27, 2014.

Bilateral trade increased from US $0.6 billion in 1992 to US$ 13.38 billion in 2013. With the entry into force of CECA from 1.7.2011, the bilateral trade has shown rapid growth. However, the bilateral trade stood at US $ 13.38 billion for the period Jan.- Dec. 2013 registering an increase over the corresponding figure for Jan.- Dec. 2012, viz. US $ 13.32 billion, marginal increase due to global economic slowdown. As per Indian statistics, the figures of bilateral trade in Jan-Dec 2013 were US $ 14.10 billion registering an increase of 1.5% over the corresponding figures of US $ 13.89 billion for the period Jan-Dec. 2012 (Source: Directorate General of Commercial Intelligence and Statistics, Ministry of Commerce & Industry, India). The bilateral trade stood at US $ 3.04 billion for the period Jan.- March 2014 compared to US $ 3.48 billion during the same period in 2013. Based on DIPP’s statistics, Malaysia is currently the 21st largest investor in India with FDI inflows from April 2000 to March 2014 standing at US $ 637.73 million. The figures based on GOI statistics, however, do not include substantial flow of Malaysian investment to India through the Mauritius route. Notable among these are about US$ 2 billion invested by Maxis Communications in Aircel and US$ 1.6 billion so far by Axiata in IDEA Cellular Ltd. If these were to be taken into account, the cumulative Malaysian investments in India till date stands in excess of US$ 6 billion.

Malaysian construction companies’ largest presence outside Malaysia is in India. They have completed 71 construction projects worth US$ 3.255billion in India, while 15 projects worth US$ 1.859 billion are under various stages of implementation. Under a partnership with Malaysian Airports, GMR completed airport in Hyderabad in 2008, and the second one in Delhi in July 2010.

As per Malaysian Investment Development Authority (MIDA), Indian cumulative investment into Malaysia from 1980 – August 2013 stand USD 2051.29 million (2.05 billion) which include investments of USD 2.93 million during 2013. Indian companies that made major acquisitions include Reliance Industries Limited, Ballarpur Industries Limited, Larsen & Toubro and WIPRO. Biocon India, Manipal University, Strides Arcolabs and VLCC are amongst the companies who have announced fresh investments in Malaysia in the past 24 months. There are over 100 Indian companies including 60 Indian joint ventures operating in Malaysia. In addition, there are 60 Indian IT companies operating from Malaysia. IRCON International Ltd. has been actively engaged in the development of railways in Malaysia since 1988, and it has successfully completed a double tracking project (Seremban – Gemas) worth over US $1billion on 31st July 2013.

An MoU on Cooperation relating to the Provision of Technical Assistance Services on Highway Management and Development was signed in December 2010 during the visit of Shri Kamal Nath, the then Minister of Road Transport and Highways to Malaysia. A bilateral Steering Committee has been established to oversee the implementation of this MoU, which will enhance the participation of Malaysian infrastructure companies in the Indian economy.

Tourism & Connectivity:

Air links have improved significantly following a bilateral agreement in 2007 to progressively increase the seat capacity to six major destinations in India and a provision for multiple destinations and designating any number of airlines to operate on the India–Malaysia routes. At present, there are about 100 flights between two countries, the majority of which are operated by Malaysian carriers. The two countries have agreed ad referendum to the text of a Revised Air Services Agreement in October 2011, and are in the process of obtaining internal approvals.

India is the sixth largest source country for inbound tourism to Malaysia with 6650,989 Indian tourists visiting Malaysia in 2013 according to Malaysia Tourism statistics. Malaysia is the tenth largest source country for foreign tourists visiting India with 195,853 Malaysians visiting India in 2012. With the signing of the MoU for Cooperation in the Field of Tourism in 2010, there would be greater people-to-people contact and also greater flow of tourists from both the countries.

Education & Cultural Cooperation:

About 2000 Indian students are studying in Malaysia, while an estimated 3000 Malaysian students are studying in India. An MOU on Higher Education was signed on 20 January 2010 during Prime Minister Dato' Seri Najib’s visit to India. India offers 25 training slots under ITEC and 5 slots under the Colombo Plan. India also offers nearly 30 scholarships for studies in graduate, post-graduate and research programmes in universities in India.

Indian Cultural Centre (ICC) :

Indian Cultural Centre, Kuala Lumpur, a Cultural Wing of High Commission of India, Kuala Lumpur was established in February 2010. It is situated in Capsquare, Jalan Munshi Abdullah, Kuala Lumpur and conducts classes in Carnatic Vocal, Kathak dance, Yoga, Hindi language and Tabla by trained teachers from India and Malaysia. At the Indian Cultural Centre, more than 500 students have been benefited by the classes at ICC. ICC collaborates with various cultural institutions in Malaysia to promote Indian culture in various parts of Malaysia. Establishment of the Centre is an important initiative of the Government of India, in keeping with the high priority it attaches to its bilateral relations with Malaysia. The Centre is administered by the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR), an autonomous organisation of the Ministry of External Affairs of India, which promotes awareness and appreciation of India’s composite cultural heritage abroad.

People-to-People exchanges have also expanded with the signing of the Cultural Exchange Programme for 2010–2013; with the establishment of an Indian Cultural Centre in Kuala Lumpur in February 2010; with the establishment of a Joint ICT Talent Development Committee in February 2011; and with the holding of the 2nd bilateral Joint Commission for Science & Technology in July 2011. The Parliament of India has constituted an India-Malaysia Parliamentary Friendship Group {Shri Lalji Tandon [BJP] in President} since October 2011.

Labour & Expatriates: There are 1.3 lakh Indian nationals in Malaysia who are working in various capacities including skilled category. These professional expatriates employed in IT manufacturing and banking sectors. A bilateral MoU on Employment and Welfare of Workers signed in January 2009 establishes an institutional framework to deal with issues concerning Indian workers. Three Joint Working Group meetings at the Secretary-level were held in March 2009, April 2010 and April 2012. Illegal immigration and human trafficking from India into Malaysia is a matter of concern to both Governments and, according to Malaysian statistics, over 50,000 Indian nationals have registered as “illegal” workers under their Amnesty Scheme in August 2011.

Persons of Indian Origin (PIOs): Malaysia has one of the largest communities of Persons of Indian Origin in the world, numbering close of 2 million (about 7 % of Malaysia’s population). The overwhelming numbers of PIOs are Tamil speaking, with significant people speaking Telugu, Malayalam and Punjabi as well. The Malaysian Indian Congress is the dominant political organization of the PIOs since pre- independence, and is a member of the ruling coalition since independence, but of late several smaller political organizations have emerged. There is also significant PIO support to two Opposition Parties – the PKR and DAP. Malaysia has been sending the largest contingent to the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas and currently has five PBS Awardees– Dato Seri Samy Vellu, Tan Sri Somasundaram, Tan Sri Vadiveloo, Tan Sri Ajit Singh and Tan Sri Ravindra Menon. Datuk Seri G. Palanivel, Minister of Natural Resources and Environment of Malaysia and President of the Malaysian Indian Congress, was the Chief Guest at the 12th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas in New Delhi on 7-9 January 2014.

Useful Resources:

For more information and latest updates please visit High Commission of India, Kuala Lumpur website: http://www.indianhighcommission.com.my/ Indian Cultural Centre High Commission of India, Kuala Lumpur website: http://www.icckl.com.my/

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July 2014