Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak and US President Barack Obama met at a gala dinner held in conjunction with the Asean Summits in Laos last night.

Posting a photograph of their conversation on Facebook, Najib, who was accompanied by his wife Rosmah Mansor, said he had a "pleasant chat" with Obama.

"It was nice seeing you Mr President!" the prime minister said in his posting.

Najib is in Laos to attend the 28th and 29th Asean Summits and Related Summits.

This is the first time both leaders have met since the US Department of Justice (DOJ) filed civil suits against the alleged abuse of 1MDB funds.

Obama has visited Malaysia twice, during which the pair took selfies and Najib was given a ride in the US president’s official vehicle, dubbed The Beast.

In December 2014, Obama and Najib also played golf in Hawaii.

The DOJ has filed a civil forfeiture suit in Los Angeles seeking to seize properties worth about US$1 billion (RM4 billion) linked to 1MDB, as part of the US$3.5 billion allegedly misappropriated from the state fund.

The assets involved included penthouses, mansions, artwork, a private jet, a yacht and proceeds from 'The Wolf of Wall Street' movie.

Among others, the court filings named Najib’s stepson Riza Aziz and Malaysian-born businessman Jho Low, who is said to be close to the prime minister’s family.

The documents also mentioned 'Malaysian Official 1' 36 times.

Though it did not name this person, it described him as a senior government official who was previously investigated by Malaysian authorities for receiving US$681 million in his personal bank account.

It also claimed that MO1 received US$731 million in total, which originated from 1MDB.

On Sept 1, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Abdul Rahman Dahlan confirmed that MO1 referred to Najib, but maintained that Najib was not named because he was not part of the DOJ investigation and suit.

Najib has also denied abusing public funds for personal gain and has been cleared by the authorities of any wrongdoing.