U.S. President Barack Obama played golf Wednesday with a new and distinguished playing partner - Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak.
Both Mr. Obama and Mr. Najib are vacationing in the U.S. Pacific state of Hawaii, the U.S. president's birthplace.
The two leaders played a round of Christmas Eve golf at the Marine Corps base in Kaneohe Bay along with two of Mr. Obama's aides.
The White House released a statement saying the duo "took the opportunity to discuss the growing and warming relationship between the United States and Malaysia," and that the president looked forward to working with Mr. Najib next year, when Malaysia takes over the chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
President Obama visited Malaysia earlier this year, the first sitting U.S. president to visit the country in nearly 50 years.