New Delhi
2 April 2008
India and Burma on Wednesday signed the agreement and two
protocols of the Kaladan multi-modal transit transport project. The pact was inked in the
presence of Vice President Hamid Ansari and visiting Vice Senior General Maung Aye of
Burma.
Vice Senior General Maung Aye, who is the vice chairman of the State Peace and
Development Council, arrived here in the morning for a five-day visit to India. He is
leading a high-level delegation, including members of the business community.
The Kaladan project will facilitate shipment of goods to and from Sittwe, from where the
goods can be sent to and received via road from the north-eastern Indian states. It will
obviate the need for transiting through Bangladesh. It will involve the development of
Sittwe port and construction of a road linking Kalewa in Burma to the border town of
Moreh in the north-eastern region of India.
India and Burma signed a double taxation avoidance agreement on the occasion. Both
sides agreed to take steps to open up the existing border points in the north-east states
for regular trade.
Vice Senior General Maung Aye is Burma's second-highest ranking military leader, after
Senior General Than Shwe. He and his wife Mya Mya San are visiting India at the
invitation of Vice President Hamid Ansari.
The delegation-level talks between the Burmese General and Vice President Ansari
centred around economic cooperation, connectivity, security and energy. Burma's
roadmap for a new constitution, referendum in May and elections in 2010 also came up
for a mention.
Vice President Ansari reiterated India's support to the efforts of United Nations Secretary
General's Special Envoy Prof Ibrahim Gambari and conveyed that India did not believe
that sanctions were helpful and that it may well prove to be counterproductive.
Calling Burma as a natural bridge between ASEAN and SAARC, the Vice President
reiterated the mutual desire of India and Burma to build on the commonalities and
synergies between the two countries.
The Burmese General called on President Pratibha Devisingh Patil and held talks with
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Minister of External Affairs Pranab Mukherjee and
Chief of Army Staff General Deepak Kapoor called on him.
In his talks with the Prime Minister, the General recognised the need to cooperate
closely in the hydrocarbon sector. For his part, the Prime Minister reiterated India's
commitment to support Burma in the telecommunication and the IT sectors. They
discussed cooperation in security matters on the India-Burma border, too.
The Prime Minister also underlined the need for Burma to expedite the national
reconciliation process and make it broad-based to include all sections of society,
including Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and the various ethnic groups in Burma.
On Thursday Leader of the Opposition LK Advani will call on General Maung Aye. Apart
from Delhi, the Burmese General will also be visiting places of economic, scientific,
historical and religious interest. He will travel to Bhopal, Sanchi, Jamnagar, Bangalore,
Varanasi, Sarnath and Gaya. He will leave Gaya on Sunday for Nay Pyi Taw.
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