PM likely to discuss high-speed rail link, Iskandar projects with M’sia

KUALA LUMPUR — Before getting down to serious business today as part of a leaders’ retreat, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and his wife Ho Ching were yesterday hosted to a private cruise dinner on Putrajaya Lake by Malaysian Premier Najib Razak and his wife Rosmah Mansor.

Mr Lee is accompanied at the fifth such retreat by a high-powered delegation including Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean and eight other ministers. Today, the Singapore leaders will meet their Malaysian counterparts to review progress in bilateral relations and discuss ways to further enhance cooperation across a wide range of areas.

This time, items likely to be on the agenda include the high-speed rail link between Kuala Lumpur and Singapore, the rapid transit system connecting the Republic’s MRT system with Johor Baru and joint projects in Iskandar Malaysia.

Earlier yesterday, Mr and Mrs Lee were shown around Kuala Lumpur’s city centre. They visited the Petronas Twin Towers, where Mr Lee was received by KLCC Property Holdings Executive Director Hashimah Hashim.

During a 30-minute tour, Mr Lee walked around the Bukit Bintang area and Bangsar Village to see new developments that have taken place over the past decade. He also visited KL Sentral and the site of the planned Tun Razak Exchange, a proposed international financial and business hub under Malaysia’s Economic Transformation Programme.

The retreat was started in May 2007 by former Malaysian Premier Abdullah Badawi and Mr Lee in Langkawi. Previous meetings have yielded significant agreements, including a solution to Malayan Railway Land in Singapore.