Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak arrived in New York yesterday to begin a working visit, aimed at strengthening and broadening Malaysia’s relations with the world’s largest economy, the United States.

Najib and his wife, Rosmah Mansor, arrived at the Westchester County Airport in New York by special aircraft at 1am local time today after a working visit to the United Kingdom.

They were received by the Malaysian Ambassador to the United States, Othman Hashim.

Najib will have a busy programme during his visit, starting with chairing the Second Meeting of the Global Sciences and Innovation Advisory Council (GSIAC) at the New York Academy of Sciences (NYAS) today.

The prime minister is also scheduled to witness several exchanges of documents in conjunction with the meeting.

They include memorandums of understanding (MoUs) between MyBiomass, Sime Darby and Felda; Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) and NYAS; Universiti Teknologi Malaysia and Columbia University; Center for Global Sustainability Studies (CGSS), Universiti Sains Malaysia and Earth Institute, Columbia University; and Nano Malaysia Corporation and Advanced Energy Research and Technology Center of Stony Brook University, New York.

Najib will also attend a business roundtable meeting with leaders of Fortune 500 Companies at the Harvard Club of New York.  

He is also scheduled to meet  Ocean Thermal Energy Corporation chairperson and CEO Jeremy P Feakins and Motorola Solutions executive vice-president Gene Delaney, among others.

In a separate programme, Rosmah is scheduled to receive courtesy call by the chief executive officer of Girl Scouts of the USA, Anna Maria Chavez, and visit the New York Presbyterian Children’s Hospital today.

Najib and Rosmah will depart for Washington DC by special aircraft from the Westchester County Airport on Friday.

- Bernama