Agong will depart to London for special visit and audience with King Charles III

KUALA LUMPUR - Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah and Raja Permaisuri Agong Tunku Hajah Azizah Aminah Maimunah Iskandariah will be on a special visit to London from tomorrow until October 16.

Among the highlight of the visit will be the Agong and the Permaisuri Agong's audience with Britain's King Charles III at Buckingham Palace on October 12.

In a statement by the Comptroller of the Royal Household for Istana Negara Datuk Seri Ahmad Fadil Shamsuddin today, such a meeting that reflected Sultan Abdullah's closeness with King Charles.

“His Majesty's friendship with King Charles spans over four decades and had played polo together during his teenage years in various international competitions.

"The audience is also a testimony of the close bilateral relationship between Malaysia and the United Kingdom since Malaysia's independence 65 years ago," Ahmad Fadil remarked.

Sultan Abdullah and Tunku Azizah will also officiate the opening of the Battersea Power Station, Malaysia's iconic project in London on the same day.

The 16.99-hectare real-estate project is a joint venture between Sime Darby Property, SP Setia Berhad, the Employees Provident Fund and Permodalan Nasional Berhad since 2012 with a gross development value of RM51.53 billion.

Ahmad Fadil further said the Agong and Permaisuri Agong were scheduled to end the special visit and depart for Malaysia on October 16.

The United Kingdom is Malaysia's 18th largest trading partner in 2021 with total trade recorded between the two countries amounting to RM17.17 billion, an increase of 2.9 per cent compared to 2020.

Last year Malaysia's exports to the United Kingdom was valued at RM9.78 billion whereas the value of imports from the United Kingdom amounted to RM7.39 billion.