Myanmar President U Min Aung Hlaing will kick-start a five-day visit to India on Saturday that will be focused on boosting bilateral cooperation in trade, connectivity, border security and defence.
Aung Hlaing’s visit to India comes less than two months after he assumed office as Myanmar’s president following the country’s parliamentary elections.
The elections were held in December and January following years of unrest and protests against the military junta, which seized power in a coup on February 1, 2021, ousting the democratically elected government led by Aung San Suu Kyi.
Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh had represented India at Aung Hlaing's inauguration as the president last month.
He effectively ran Myanmar for the last five years helming the military rule.
Myanmar is one of India's strategic neighbours and it shares a 1,640-kilometre-long border with a number of northeastern states including militancy-hit Nagaland and Manipur.
The Myanmarese leader will be accompanied by a high-level delegation comprising several cabinet ministers, senior officials and business leaders.
This will be President Aung Hlaing's first visit to India in his current capacity.
Aung Hlaing was earlier scheduled to visit New Delhi to participate in the International Big Cat Alliance Summit on June 1, which has been deferred.
"President U Min Aung Hlaing will hold discussions with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on June 1 on further strengthening the historical and civilisational ties between the two countries. He will also participate in a business forum," the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said.
The Myanmarese president will also travel to Bodh Gaya on May 30 and to Mumbai on June 2 for business and industry interactions and site visits.
MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal, at his weekly media briefing, said that issues relating border security and connectivity among others will be discussed during the Myanmarese leader's trip to India.
"Regarding border security, connectivity and other issues, all matters that form part of the gamut of relations between India and Myanmar will come up for discussions. Our idea is to take our friendly, civilisational ties forward," he said.
Jaiswal said Myanmar lies at the "confluence" of India's Neighborhood First, Act East and MAHASAGAR policies.
PM Modi announced the vision MAHASAGAR or 'Mutual and Holistic Advancement for Security and Growth Across Regions' for India's engagement with the Global South during his visit to Mauritius in March last year.
"The official visit of President U Min Aung Hlaing to India is expected to further strengthen and deepen the multi-faceted relations between the two countries," he said.
People familiar with the Myanmarese leader's visit said ways to expand defence and trade ties will be a major focus area of talks between the two sides.
(With inputs from PTI)
