CANBERRA: Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin yesterday called on his counterpart Warren Truss during which he expressed appreciation for Australia’s assistance and support for the MH370 and MH17 tragedies.

Their meeting took place at Truss’ office in Parliament House in the Australian capital on the second day of Muhyiddin’s three-day working visit to Canberra and Perth.

“We view Australia as a true friend of Malaysia,” Muhyiddin told Malaysian media covering his visit to Australia.

He noted that it was important to continue to emphasise cooperation which had been established all these years with Australia.

Leaders of the two countries had always brought up matters of mutual interest such as trade, education and tourism in their meetings, Muhyiddin said.

This, he said, fitted in with Malaysia’s intention to have as many friends as possible to, among others, market its products and draw investments from.

At another event, Muhyiddin witnessed the signing of a memorandum of understanding between the Australian National University and Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), signalling the launch of the Global Malaysian Studies Network at the Australian National University (GMSN@ANU).

He said GMSN@ANU should become an important platform for scholars in the field of Malaysian studies to conduct thorough research on Malaysia and present a balanced view of the country’s politics, economy and society.

“I believe independent, objective and in-depth academic research on the many facets of the country’s political and social life will help the international community to have a better understanding of Malaysia and avoid any distorted view of our country,” he said.

Muhyiddin announced that the Malaysian government through UKM would contribute A$150,000 (RM434,668) annually to GMSN@ANU for five years to provide funding for research and other academic collaborations in the field of Malaysian studies. — Bernama

This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily, on November 13, 2014.