“Thank God, I was given the most special honour. To speak at the closing of the conference, I was the only one invited (to speak). At the dinner, I was seated beside Prime Minister Turnbull,” he told Malaysian reporters as quoted by Bernama.

“There were parties urging that I not be given a special reception but it appears (their requests) have been rejected and failed. The Australian government still accorded the highest honours to the Malaysian government,” he said.

The summit, the first such conference hosted by Australia for Asean leaders, was also attended by Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull.

Najib was among Asean leaders who spoke at the closing of the Conference on Terrorism Prevention, part of the summit held at the Sydney International Conference Centre here today.

Days before the summit, Australian papers had reported a revelation by Turnbull’s son, who said his career at investment bank Goldman Sachs had suffered after he questioned bonds worth $6 billion for 1MDB.

An Australian paper had said that Turnbull would find it “awkward” to meet Najib following the remarks by Alex Turnbull.

“For Mr Turnbull it is a ­reminder of the unanswered questions around his son’s revelations, as well as unresolved issues surrounding ANZ’s role in the 1MDB issue as part-owner of ­Malaysian bank AmBank,” The Australian wrote on Mar 14.