KUALA LUMPUR (Bernama): Malaysia and Australia are discussing the possibility of reopening borders between the two countries as soon as possible, says Foreign Minister Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah.

       Speaking after meeting his visiting Australian counterpart Senator Marise Payne here on Saturday (Nov 6), he said the health ministers of both countries are also discussing the matter and he said he was hopeful it could be concluded soon.

       "The understanding is that it has to be in stages. What those stages will be are to be announced later, as and when our health ministers are ready.

       "As far as foreign ministers are concerned, we need to travel and we want people to travel," he said in a joint news conference with Payne.

       Earlier, Saifuddin and Payne co-chaired the fourth Malaysia-Australia Annual Foreign Ministers' Meeting (AFMM), which was the first after the Prime Ministers of Malaysia and Australia launched the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP) on Jan 27, 2021.

       Meanwhile, Payne noted that like Malaysia, Australia also had very strict controls in place, both domestically and at the country's borders due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

       She said Australia is gradually reopening its borders and eager to see the return of international travellers, including Malaysian international students.

       "We know how much they value the opportunity, and we also are very welcoming of Malaysian students to Australia, so it's not too far off.

       "But we need to work through as the minister (Saifuddin) said, the various stages of both of our systems, around vaccinations, around health systems and take those steps but hopefully not too far away," she said.

       Both ministers said the meeting touched on various areas under the CSP framework such as trade and investment, education, tourism, defence, people-to-people ties, as well as post-Covid-19 cooperation.

       Payne is on a three-day working visit to Malaysia from Friday until Nov 7.

       She is also scheduled to hold meetings with Defence Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein and Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin. – Bernama