Malaysia rolls out red carpet as King Salman kicks off Asia tour

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia welcomed King Salman on Sunday for the start of a rare, month-long Asian tour, where the Saudi leader will build ties and seek to draw more investments to the oil-rich gulf nation.
The visit is the first by a Saudi king to Malaysia in more than a decade, as the Arab nation courts Asian investors for the sale of a 5 percent stake in state firm Aramco in 2018, expected to be the world’s biggest IPO.
Malaysian state television on Sunday showed live footage of King Salman descending from his plane. He was received by Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak before leaving in a convoy for a state ceremony at Malaysia’s parliament grounds.
The leader was greeted in parliament with a 21-gun salute.
King Salman will also visit Indonesia, Brunei, Japan, China, the Maldives and Jordan “to meet with the leaders of those countries to discuss bilateral relations and regional and international issues of common concern,” a royal court statement carried on Saudi Press Agency said.
A big delegation is accompanying the king on his four-day visit to Malaysia, where cooperation on energy developments will be on the agenda.
State oil firm Petroliam Nasional Bhd (Petronas) and Saudi Aramco will sign an agreement on Tuesday to collaborate in Malaysia’s Refinery and Petrochemical Integrated Development (RAPID) project, a boost for the Southeast Asian economy which has been reeling under weak global oil prices.
The last time a Saudi king visited Malaysia was in 2006, when King Abdullah, King Salman’s predecessor, flew in with a 300-member delegation.
“Saudi Arabian investment in Malaysia is expected to create thousands of jobs and we are proud that Malaysian firms have been chosen to undertake projects at some of the most prestigious locations in Saudi Arabia,” Najib said in a statement on Friday.
After Malaysia, the King is expected to travel to Jakarta and Bali in Indonesia from March 1-9 with an even larger entourage of 1,500 people, followed by a trip to Japan from March 12 to 14, officials in those countries said.