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Rohingya, road link under focus

Foreign secys meet in Dhaka tomorrow

Diplomatic Correspondent
Dhaka-Yangon direct road communications, repatriation of Rohingya refugees, border trade and easing visa regime will be high on the agenda of the two-day foreign secretary'-level talks between Bangladesh and Myanmar beginning in Dhaka tomorrow.
Official sources said Dhaka might also ask for assurance from the Myanmar authorities that Myanmar would not encroach upon Bangladesh's maritime boundary. Although Bangladesh went to the UN tribunal to settle the maritime dispute, officials said Dhaka would continue talks with both India and Myanmar bilaterally.
Foreign Secretary Mohamed Mijarul Quayes will lead the FROM PAGE 16
Bangladesh side at the consultation while his Myanmar counterpart U Maung Myint, who Is deputy foreign minister, will lead his country's team. The five-member Myanmar delegation is due to arrive in Dhaka today.
Bangladesh and Myanmar have claims on overlapping offshore blocks in the Bay of Bengal. India and Myanmar have counter claims on majority of the total 28 sea blocks of Bangladesh. Dhaka has been in negotiations with the two countries for years, but the bilateral talks are yet to bring any tangible result.
The Awami League led government a few months back went to the UN tribunal to settle the maritime disputes. The government hopes that the issue will be resolved through the UN tribunal in four to five years, foreign ministry officials said.
Repatriation of Rohingya refugees has remained a major irritant between the two countries since 1992 when over a million people fled from Myanmar's Northern Rakhain state and took shelter in the bordering Bangladesh to escape persecution.
Officials said Dhaka will talk on repatriation of 29,000 Rohingya refugees and stopping pushback by Myanmar. The refugees are living in three camps in Cox's Bazar.
Talking to The Daily Star yesterday, a high official of the foreign ministry said, "our consultations are basically aimed at improving bilateral relations with our neighbour Myanmar and strengthening economic cooperation."
The Bangladesh side would focus on strengthening the border trade, including banking, to discourage informal trade. Bangladesh will
strongly put up the issue of opening of LC (Letter of Credit) between the two countries (or expansion of trade and commerce, he added.
Easing Myanmar's visa regime for Bangladeshi businessmen and other travellers would be discussed prominently. Currently Bangladeshi businessmen get a maximum 14-day visa and can go upto Rakhain state. In border trade, businessmen can go upto Mongdu by taking border pass.
Sources said Dhaka will also emphasise construction of the proposed Bangladesh-Myanmar friendship road and seek to know Yangon's latest position in this regard. A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed on April 4 in 2004 between Bangladesh and Myanmar to construct 25 kilometres of road at a cost of Tk 195 crore, but the move was stalled.
Of the 25 km, two kilometres in Bangladesh and the remaining 23 km will be constructed on the Myanmar side. Besides, Bangladesh will want to know from Myanmar side about the proposed Chittagong-Kunming road.
According to officials, 110-km more roads will be constructed after the construction of the 25-km friendship road to establish direct road communications with China. Officials said the proposed road is seen as vital for establishing greater links with Thailand and China.
On regional issues, they said since Myanmar is also a member of BIMSTEC and ARF (ASEAN Regional Forum), issues concerning them would also be discussed. Earlier, Myanmar supported Bangladesh in getting observer status at the ARF.