Anwar meets with Modi as India and Malaysia work to expand ties and defense cooperation

NEW DELHI (AP) — The leaders of India and Malaysia say they will seek to expand economic ties and strengthen cooperation on defense and security. Malaysian Prime Minster Anwar Ibrahim was meeting with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday as he made his first visit to India since he took office in 2022. Recently, Anwar has sought to move closer to China, with whom New Delhi has been locked in a long-running border dispute. A key part of Modi’s foreign policy has been to deepen trade and ties with other Asian countries to push back against growing Chinese influence. Anwar and Modi signed a slew of agreements in areas such as digital technologies, tourism and traditional medicine.