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Asia-Pacific
Mahathir to meet 'moron' Soros
Former Malaysian premier to meet financier he said caused Asian financial crisis.
Last Modified: 13 Dec 2006 09:55 GMT
Mahathir, left, and Soros traded accusations
over the 1997 Asian financial crisis
Mahathir Mohamad, the former Malaysian prime minister, has agreed to meet George Soros, the US billionaire financier he once famously labelled "a moron".
 
The meeting will take place later this week when Soros travels to Malaysia to deliver a lecture.
In the late 1990s Mahathir accused Soros of being behind the 1997 Asian financial crisis and said he was out to wreck Asian economies.
 
Soros hit back, accusing Mahathir of being "a menace" to his own country.
 
Now the two men appear to have patched up their differences, with Mahathir’s aides saying on Wednesday that the two had agreed to meet.

'Think alike'

There was no indication on what grounds Soros had sought the meeting, but online newspaper Malaysiakini has quoted the financier as saying Mahathir and he now held some ideas in common.

Malaysiakini quoted Soros as saying in an interview earlier this year: "I think Mahathir has made a great contribution to Malaysia's material development, but like all great men, he has made some great mistakes.

"There are many areas where we think alike, and I'll be happy to engage in a dialogue with him."

Soros is ranked number 27 in Forbes' list of 400 richest Americans in 2006, with a net worth of $8.5bn to his name through hedge funds.

Mahathir, who stood down as Malaysian prime minister in 2003, suffered a mild heart attack last month, but has since returned to work.
Source:
Agencies
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