Myanmar leader visits New Zealand to build closer ties

The president of Myanmar Thein Sein is spending the second day of his first visit to New Zealand building closer ties with key players in the dairy sector.

New Zealand ended decades of limited contact last year, when Prime Minister John Key visited Myanmar and pledged 7 million NZ dollars (5.7 million U.S. dollars) toward humanitarian aid and the construction of dairy farm capabilities.

Thein Sein accepted Key's invitation to visit and met with New Zealand dairy company Fonterra in Auckland on Friday morning.

He was officially welcomed on Thursday by New Zealand Governor General Jerry Mateparae.

At his state dinner in Auckland on Thursday night, the New Zealand governor general said the growing relationship between the countries will be cemented further by the establishment of a diplomatic presence in Yangon, Radio New Zealand reported.

Sein welcomed that increased presence of New Zealand and said he would encourage bilateral trade and investment.

Mateparae said he also encourages increased trade and the sharing of knowledge between the two countries.