India, Myanmar agree to enhance bilateral engagement
NEW DELHI - Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Myanmar President U Htin Kyaw have decided to actively cooperate to tackle common challenges
India and Myanmar have recognised their security interests were closely aligned and decided to “actively cooperate to combat the common challenges of terrorism and insurgent activity,” and to work together for the safety and security of their people in a meeting on Monday.
This was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi after his discussions with visiting Myanmarese President U Htin Kyaw at a joint media interaction at Hyderabad House. Four MoUs were exchanged to enhance India-Myanmar development partnership.
Modi acknowledged that the Myanmarese President had chosen India for his first bilateral State visit, and recalled the longstanding cultural and historic linkages between the two neighbours. He said the two leaders discussed the whole range of their bilateral relations, and agreed “on the need to remain sensitive to each other’s strategic interests and concerns”.
Extending India’s cooperation in Myanmar’s economic progress, the Prime Minister said India’s engagement with Myanmar was supporting projects in connectivity, infrastructure, capacity building education, healthcare and included the Kaladan port and waterway project; India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway; Myanmar Institute of Information Technology; and the Advanced Centre of Agricultural Research and Education. “India's nearly 2 billion dollar development assistance is touching the lives of the common man of Myanmar,” he said.
He said the two operational agreements signed today will facilitate the construction and upgrading of 69 bridges and the Kalewa-Yargi road section of the Trilateral Highway Project. “We are also determined to deepen our cooperation in agriculture, banking, power, and energy,” he said.
The MoUs on Cooperation in Renewable Energy and on Traditional Systems of medicine will operationalise India’s cooperation in these areas. “We have also agreed to work towards a long-term and a mutually beneficial arrangement for trade in pulses. In April this year, we took the small step of supplying power to Tamu in Myanmar. I have told the President that we are willing to substantially scale up our supply of power,” Modi said.
“I am happy that our partnership is restoring Ananda temple in Bagan in Myanmar. We are also ready to restore other historic monuments and pagodas, which were damaged in the earthquake which hit Myanmar just last week,” the Prime Minister said.
The Myanmarese President said his visit was aimed at strengthening the traditional ties between the two countries. In his discussions, he said, the two sides covered bilateral, regional and international issues. Both sides agreed that greater bilateral cooperation was required for inclusive growth and development and to contribute to peace, stability and prosperity in the two countries, and in the region as a whole. The two countries were cooperating with each other in various multilateral fora, he said.
Earlier, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj called on the Myanmarese President. Kyaw had arrived in the Buddhist pilgrimage town of Gaya on Saturday where he visited the Mahabodhi Temple, the most sacred of Buddhist shrines, Daijokyo Buddhist Temple and Myanmar Buddhist Vihara. He travelled to Agra city yesterday and paid a visit to Taj Mahal.
