MT News
At the official invitation of H.E. Mr. Don Pramudwinai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Thailand, the current Chair of BIMSTEC, the Union Minister for Foreign Affairs H.E. U Than Swe participated in the BIMSTEC Foreign Ministers’ Retreat held on 17 July 2023.
The Foreign Ministers of the BIMSTEC Member States i.e. H.E. Dr. A. K. Abdul Momen, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Bangladesh, H.E. Dr. Tandi Dorji, Minister for Foreign Affairs and External Trade of Bhutan, H.E. Dr. S. Jaishankar, Minister for External Affairs of India, H.E. Narayan Prakash Saud, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Nepal, H.E Mr. Ali Sabry, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Sri Lanka, H.E. Mr. Don Pramudwinai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs of Thailand and H.E. Mr. Tenzin Lekphell, Secretary-General of BIMSTEC were present at the Retreat.
During the Retreat, the Foreign Ministers cordially discussed and exchanged views on matters related to BIMSTEC Cooperation mechanism as well as regional and global issues.
On BIMSTEC Cooperation mechanism, their discussions focused on the cooperation with the external partners, establishment of the Eminent Persons’ Group (EPG) on the Future Directions of BIMSTEC and holding of the BIMSTEC Ministerial Meetings. They also deliberated on resiliency to crisis i.e. pandemic, financial crisis and natural disasters, post covid-19 economic development and other regional and global issues including ways and means to establish cross-border digital payment system, health, energy and food security.
After the Retreat, the Chair of BIMSTEC, Thailand hosted a Luncheon in honor of delegations to the BIMSTEC Foreign Ministers’ Retreat. Then, the BIMSTEC Foreign Ministers paid a joint courtesy call on H.E. Mr. Prayut Chan-o-cha, the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Thailand.
On the sidelines of the BIMSTEC Foreign Ministers’ Retreat, H.E. Mr. Tenzin Lekphell, the Secretary General of BIMSTEC paid a courtesy call on the Union Minister H.E. U Than Swe in the afternoon of 16 July 2023. During the call, the Union Minister handed over the original document of Myanmar’s “Instrument of Ratification to the BIMSTEC Charter” to the Secretary General. Myanmar has already ratified the BIMSTEC Charter as per the provisions stipulated in the Charter.
In the evening of 16 July 2023, the Union Minister H.E. U Than Swe together with the Foreign Ministers from other BIMSTEC Member States attended the Welcoming Dinner hosted by H.E. Mr. Don Pramudwinai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs of Thailand, the current Chair of BIMSTEC.
The Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) is a regional organization established in 1997 and it comprises seven Member States namely Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand. The main aim of BIMSTEC is to promote economic cooperation among the Member States of the Bay of Bengal region. Out of current seven Sectors of BIMSTEC Cooperation, Myanmar is now serving as the Lead Country in “Agriculture and Food Security Sector”.
