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Dhaka, Yangon sign MoU on direct road link

Staff Correspondent
Bangladesh and Myanmar yesterday signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on establishing a direct road link between Dhaka and Yangon.
The next-door neighbours also signed two other MoUs on cooperation in agriculture and related fields and waiver of visas for Bangladeshi diplomats and government officials after official talks between Prime Minister Khaleda Zia and visiting Myanmar Prime Minister General
Khin Nyunt at her office.
Under the first MoU, Dhaka and Yangon agreed to set up joint technical and financial taskforces to determine the details for early implementation of the road-link project.
The constitution of the taskforces follows the statement of intent signed by Prime Minister Khaleda Zia on her visit to Yangon in March last year to construct the direct road link as a part of the Asian Highway.
Bangladesh will assist in the construction of a bridge over Naaf
river to link the two countries.
The Myanmar premier will watch the laying of the foundation stone for the direct road link at Ramu in Chittagong today.
During the official talks, Dhaka and Yangon also agreed to release Bangladeshi and Myanmar citizens from each other's prisons as a gesture of friendship. Myanmar currently holds 39 Bangladeshi citizens in its prisons.
The two PMs discussed trade, agriculture and repatriation of
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Rohingya refugees.
Foreign Secretary Shomsher Mobin Chowdhury later at a press briefing at the foreign ministry said the repatriation of a "small number of Rohingya refugees" that remains in Bangladesh is not a big problem, as the two sides were keen on resolving the issue.
General Nyunt also invited Khaleda to participate in the national reconciliation process in Myanmar, which is also known as the Bangkok Process. Bangladesh accepted the invitation and agreed to cooperate with Myanmar in its efforts to democratise the country.
Myanmar pledged its support for Bangladesh's bid to join the Association of South East Asian Nations (Asean) forum.
The two countries will also set up a joint commission on trade within the next two to three months, the foreign secretary said.
During the talks, Khaleda said the strong ties between the two neighbourly nations conform with Bangladesh's commitment to its 'Look East' policy.
General Nyunt termed his visit significant because it is his first visit to any country after he took office. Nyunt also said it felt "like visiting my sister's home."
Shamsher, however, said the two leaders did not discuss the issue of imprisoned democracy leader Aung Sun Su Kyi in Myanmar. Shamsher skirted the issue, saying "it's an internal matter of [that] country".
Before official talks there was also a tete-a-tete between the two PMs at the Prime Minister's Office.
General Nyunt then called on President Iajuddin Ahmed at Bangabhaban and apprised the president of the discussions he had with Khaleda, terming them as "extremely successful and very, very fruitful".
General Nyunt arrived at 11:30am at Zia International Airport and Khaleda and her cabinet colleagues received him when it was raining heavily. He then laid wreaths at the National Memorial in Savar and the grave of late president Ziaur Rahman.
Khaleda also hosted an official dinner for her visiting counterpart at Sonargaon Hotel last night.
General Nyunt will travel to Bandarban and Cox's Bazar today to visit Buddhist pagodas and make an overnight stay in Chittagong. He will visit Chittagong Export Processing Zone and will fly off to Yangon tomorrow.
Myanmar's Minister for Home Affairs Colonel Tin Hlaing and Deputy Minister for Immigration and Manpower U Maung Aunt, meanwhile, met State Minister for Home Affairs Lutfozzaman Babar yesterday.
The two sides agreed to take steps in line with the 1994 agreement on narcotics control to combat drug trafficking and hold quarterly consultations to sort out border irritants and check cross-border crimes.
They also agreed that consular access would be provided to prisoners held in each other's jails and 15 days' visa facility would be extended to businessmen on a reciprocal basis.