.INDIAN Prime Minister Narendra Modi who is currently in Thailand to attend the 6th Bimstec (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) summit today (Apr. 4) met former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra yesterday during which they had a long conversation on expanding Thai-Indian cooperation, Naewna newspaper said.
In a post shared on X.com, Modi said: “I am very pleased to meet Mr. Thaksin Shinawatra, former Prime Minister of Thailand. He has a lot of experience in matters related to governance and policy-making. He is also a good friend of India and has good relations with Mr. Atal Ji (former Indian prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee).
“Mr. Shinawatra and I had a long conversation about cooperation between India and Thailand and how such cooperation will benefit the people of our countries. We discussed the enormous potential in various areas such as defence, trade, culture, and others.”
Last night Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra hosted dinner for leaders of the seven Bimstec countries, which aside from Thailand include Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal and Sri Lanka , at Shangri La Hotel.
It is noteworthy that Myanmar’s junta chief Min Aung Hlaing joined this summit in a rare visit to a Southeast Asian country since seizing power in a coup that led to a civil war.
He is seeking high-level bilateral meetings, three sources with direct knowledge told Reuters, who declined to be identified because they were not authorised to speak to media.
The meetings being sought include ones with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the chief adviser of Bangladesh’s interim government, Muhammed Yunus, the sources said.
“They have been reaching out asking for meetings,” one of the sources said, referring to Myanmar officials.
An Indian government source said Myanmar officials had made “overtures” to New Delhi seeking a bilateral meeting between the junta chief and Modi, but added that India had not taken a decision so far.
Min Aung Hlaing is the subject of widespread western sanctions and is barred from attending summits of the Southeast Asian bloc Asean due to the Myanmar military’s failure to implement an agreed peace plan with the bloc.
Bimstec pursues regional cooperation in seven broad sectors: Agriculture & Food Security; Connectivity; Environment & Climate Change; People-to-People Contact; Science, Technology & Innovation; Security; and Trade, Investment & Development. The cooperation also covers eight sub-sectors: Blue Economy, Mountain Economy, Energy, Disaster Management, Fisheries & Livestock, Poverty Alleviation, Health, and Human Resource Development.
CAPTION:
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi with former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra and Bimstec leaders attending a dinner hosted by Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra. Photos: Naewna
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