Badawi to tour ASEAN countries

Badawi to tour ASEAN countries

MALAYSIA: Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi is to embark on a tour of ASEAN countries in January, a trip seen as a tradition for newly-installed regional leaders to cement ties, a report said on Wednesday.

Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar said the dates for Badawi's tour of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) members were being finalized.

"During the ASEAN-Japan commemorative summit in Tokyo last week, all the ASEAN leaders invited the prime minister to visit their countries as soon as possible," Syed Hamid was quoted as saying by the Star newspaper.

Abdullah's first stops are expected to be Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines -- the founding members of ASEAN, the Star said.

It would be followed by a visit to Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam. -- AFP