UKM, Georgian University To Explore Opportunities In Research & Education

By Tengku Faezah Tengku Yusof BANGI (Selangor, Malaysia), March 20 (Bernama) -- Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) and Georgia's Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University (TSU) are committed to explore opportunities in research and education following a Letter of Intent (LOI) signed by the two universities, here Thursday. UKM's Institute of Malaysian and International Studies (IKMAS) director, Prof Dr Rashila Ramli said UKM was selected as TSU's partner as it has a Centre for Occidental Studies (iKON), which speclised in the study of Western or Occidental civilisation in all forms. "If things work out, there would probably be a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signing between the two universities towards next year," she told Bernama after a talk on Georgia's foreign Policy and current developments in the Caucasus Region by Georgia’s Charge d’Affaires ad interim (a.i.) to Malaysia Levan Machavariani. Rashila represented the UKM while Machavariani represented the Georgian university at the signing which took place at the University's Chancellory Building. She said initially there would be students exchange programme between both universities. "We can start to know their education system, get to know the country and explore other areas of research cooperation that can be carried out." These areas could also include political security, culture and society, economic development and regionalism. Georgia ia located in a strategic location, which is considered important crossroads where Europe meets Asia, and its history would be an interesting area for researchers. Meanwhile, Machavariani said that the LOI was an initiative towards stronger bilateral relations, especially in the education sector, and hoped that more of such collaboration could be established. -- BERNAMA