Indian Prime Minister Modi visits Myanmar

**By APD Writer Rishika Chauhan **

NEW DELHI, September 7 (APD)— Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Myanmar on Wednesday for his first bilateral visit to the country.

Modi met Myanmar’s State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi on Wednesday. Through a tweet Prime Minister’s Office said, “Prime Minister Modi and Councillor Aung San Suu Kyi meet in Myanmar, discuss further cementing of India-Myanmar relations.”

Though Prime Minister Modi expressed concern over “extremist violence” in Myanmar, he did not directly mention the alleged persecution of Rohingya Muslim community in the country, which according to the United Nations could become a humanitarian catastrophe.

In a joint statement with State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi, Modi said, “We hope that all stakeholders together can find a way out in which unity and territorial integrity of Myanmar is respected.”

Prime Minister Narendra Modi also fast-tracked India-led development projects in Myanmar and offered to start initiatives in the Rakhine province of the country, where a guerrilla fight between Rohingya rebels and government forces has caused a refugee crisis which has spilled into the surrounding countries, including India and Bangladesh.

Ahead of the visit, the prime minister had informed the media that India and Myanmar wanted to strengthen existing cooperation in the fields of security and counter-terrorism, trade and investment, infrastructure and energy, and culture.

The Indian Prime Mninister had previously visited Myanmar in 2014 to attend the ASEAN-India Summit. While, the President of Myanmar and Suu Kyi had visited India in 2016.

(ASIA PACIFIC DAILY)