MEA Briefing LIVE: MEA Drops Major Updates on Myanmar President Hlaing's India Visit

Added: 2026-06-02

[00:00:00]From here now let's go across to the briefing of ministry of external affairs on Myanmar president's special visit to India >> joined by our ambassador to Myanmar Shri A Takur as also by Shri Bish Sham joint secretary BM in the ministry of external affairs.

[00:00:21]With that I hand over the floor to foreign secretary for his initial remarks. Sir, >> thank you Rand. Thank you all for uh joining this afternoon. I'm sorry uh for the delay but the talks went on for slightly longer than scheduled. Um as you are aware at the uh invitation of the honorable prime minister Shri Narend Modi, the president of Myanmar uh his excellency um Minong Lang is on an official visit to India from the 30th of May till uh the 3rd of uh June uh 2026.

[00:00:54]As you are you would be uh aware that he was scheduled to uh be here for the uh international big cat alliance summit which had to be uh deferred for unavoidable reasons but uh the opportunity was taken for uh having him here for discussions on our uh bilateral relations. Uh India also happens to be the first country that the Mama president is uh visiting since he assumed office as president in April uh 2026.

[00:01:28]And uh Myanmar is an important country.

[00:01:31]Uh it's a neighbor with whom we share a border of 1,643 uh kilometers.

[00:01:38]uh it sits at the confluence of uh India's neighborhood uh first uh act east as well as uh Mahazagar and Indopacific policies. Uh the mama president is accompanied by a high powered delegation. He has with him uh five cabinet ministers, three deputy ministers uh and other senior officials.

[00:02:02]a large business delegation is also uh accompanying him as are members of the Myama India Friendship uh association.

[00:02:11]Uh now you might have seen uh day before yesterday on route to Delhi uh the Myama President stopped over in Bodhg uh where he offered prayers and visited the Mahabodi temple, the Mahabodi Dhama monastery and the Sugata temple. And uh these visits, this stopover just goes to illustrate the deep-seated uh Buddhist link uh religious links between uh our two countries as well as the very strong people-to-people ties between the two uh countries.

[00:02:44]This morning uh the uh prime minister and uh the president of Myamma uh held uh detailed uh talks on the entire gamut of uh bilateral issues which covered our trade and economic ties, our defense and security uh related issues, border management, uh development assistance, uh cultural exchanges uh as well as the regional uh situation.

[00:03:14]And both sides expressed an interest in forging closer cooperation uh particularly in the areas of trade and investment in development cooperation uh in health in education uh in energy uh and in uh some uh areas related to advanced technology for instance artificial intelligence and the space uh sector. We will be issuing a more uh detailed joint statement later in the afternoon which will provide you with more details of the discussions. Uh both sides underlined the importance of connectivity for people-to-people contacts and agreed to work uh as quickly as possible towards the completion of the uh Kaladan uh multimodal transit transport project as well as the uh Klaya segment of the India Myanmar Thailand uh trilateral uh highway.

[00:04:16]The prime minister reaffirmed uh India's support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of the Union of Myamma and both sides underscored the importance of preventing the misuse of sovereign territory for activities enimical to their security interests and the president of Myamma in particular reiterated uh the assurance that Myamma's territory would not be permitted to be used against India's security uh interests. Uh in the afternoon today uh in a short while from now in fact uh honorable Rashbati GI will receive the president of Myama. Uh earlier day before yesterday the external affairs minister of India had called on the president and yesterday the national security adviser Shri Dwal also uh called on the president uh here in uh Delhi. The Myamma president also attended an uh India Myama business conclave which was jointly organized by the Union of Myamma uh Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry uh on the Myamma side and by CI and Fiki uh on the Indian side. This took place here in New Delhi yesterday and gave the opportunity to both sides to exchange thoughts on trade and uh commerce. Bilateral trade [clears throat] between India and Myamas stands at slightly over uh $2 billion uh which comprises uh slightly over $600 million of exports uh by Myamar and about $1.5 billion in exports by uh India. Uh sorry, it's the other way around. Our exports are slightly over $600 million and Myamma's exports are slightly over $1.5 billion. Uh the president of MAMA also uh took the opportunity uh yesterday to visit the NTPC energy technology center uh in greater Noa. He will be uh leaving for Mumbai tomorrow where uh among others he will visit uh the Javal Neu uh port Trust and the uh Chajpati Shivaji Maharaj uh international airport uh in the city. Uh the focus uh obviously of that part of the visit is uh technology, energy and infrastructure uh cooperation. Overall uh this visit by the president has once again reaffirmed the shared commitment of both sides to deepen their long-standing partnership and to work together for mutual benefit, growth and prosperity uh in the region. The Myama president also uh extended an invitation to prime minister to visit Myama uh at mutually uh convenient dates. So let me stop there. We don't have a whole lot of time available but I'd be happy to answer a few questions in the time that is available. Thank you.

[00:07:19]>> Thank you sir. We now open the floor for questions. We'll begin with Naima. Yeah.

[00:07:27]>> Nanima Basu independent journalist thank you for doing this. Uh foreign secretary if I can ask you were there any discussions on Angan Suchi? What is happening with her and the you know the democratic principles what's happening to democracy there? Thank you so much Sudhant.

[00:07:43]>> Uh hi sir Siddhant from Von. Sir you mentioned about defense cooperation.

[00:07:47]What is the defense cooperation which we're looking at between India and Myanmar?

[00:07:52]>> Aayushi.

[00:07:54]>> Uh sir good afternoon. This is Aayushal from ANI. So was there any discussion on enhancing economic cooperation in critical minerals and rare earths like India exploring access to Myanmar's rare earth resources? And second sir, did cyber scam networks and trafficking of Indian nationals feature in the talks between the two leaders and has India sought stronger cooperation from Myanmar to crack down on such uh operations?

[00:08:17]Thank you.

[00:08:18]>> Mhm.

[00:08:21]Shi, you have a question please.

[00:08:24]>> Uh sir, you just spoke about the Kaladal multi project and also the trilateral highway.

[00:08:30]If you could give us an understanding where it is and what kind of promises or asurances Myanmar has extended because these projects are stalled that is is what we understand.

[00:08:40]>> Kish you have a question please.

[00:08:43]>> Thank you foreign secretary Kesha Padmanaban from the print. Uh just wanted to uh were there any discussions on the internal security situation in Myanmar and what has sort of India reiterated? I know in the past it has supported a Myanmar solution. So what was sort of the discussions between the two leaders on the current situation in the country?

[00:09:06]>> So we can take these questions.

[00:09:10]>> Uh okay. Um Nanima your question uh related to uh Angan Suchi. Uh let me say that uh the uh uh prime minister did uh raise this uh matter uh with the president and this was a discussion that was largely in the context of uh the peace process that uh is or has been uh underway uh in Myamma for uh quite some time. the effort to bring in all the uh ethnic groups uh onto the same platform uh and uh find a way forward within a united uh Myamar.

[00:09:58]This is something that you're aware has been going on for a long period of time.

[00:10:01]there isn't yet uh final agreement between all stakeholders and uh in the context of the points that the prime minister was making on the need uh for as Myama finds its way back towards democracy, the need for uh an enduring peace uh in the country. uh the need for inclusion, the need to have all stakeholders uh at the table and to examine uh the points of views of all uh the uh uh interlocutors uh who have been part of this process uh over a long uh period of uh time. uh so uh that essenti essentially uh you know it was a bit of a freewheeling discussion on that issue and that is where issues related to democracy etc were uh also uh raised. Uh I should underline that uh you know I mean our uh engagement with uh Myanmar is is not intended to be a commentary on the internal political arrangements uh in that country. We have always proceeded on the principle that uh sustained dialogue is is uh what is important and what is an imperative for India uh as uh a uh neighbor and uh the answer is clearly not disengagement.

[00:11:30]History has shown that disengagement doesn't uh give us any results that are better than uh engagement and it certainly doesn't produce democratic change if that is what we are uh interested in. On the other hand, disengagement only produces a vacuum that others go on to fill then uh to our uh detriment and those others have no interest in democracy. I can assure you about that. So uh we have uh consistently engaged and while engaging we have always put forward our thoughts on all of these issues related to democracy, related to the peace process, related to inclusion and to the absolute importance of having all stakeholders uh as part of the dialogue at the uh table.

[00:12:16]uh Sidhant on your uh question related to uh defense uh cooperation. This is something that has been uh in um uh focus for uh several uh years now and mostly the defense cooperation uh with Myamar uh focuses on training uh on capacity building uh on uh institution building uh and a very important part of the training is in the context also of UN peacekeeping. So we have been uh training uh Myama troops in uh the uh tasks of uh UN peacekeeping. Uh and obviously as I uh mentioned earlier we have a,643 kilometer long border. there are important uh defense and security related interests in the context of that border and that is also something that gets discussed uh when various mechanisms related to defense cooperation uh get uh together. Uh Aishi your question related to economic cooperation. Uh yes uh issues related to critical minerals and rare earths did come up during the discussions uh today.

[00:13:32]Uh this is something that uh has been a subject uh of uh bilateral discussions for uh for some time and uh today as well there was an understanding that the two governments and uh the entities from the two countries would continue to stay in touch remain in touch on these issues and take forward uh cooperation uh in in these areas. Uh your point related to cyber scams is a topical one. This is something uh on which we have been cooperating with Myanmar over a period of time. Uh if my memory serves me right, over the course of the last year and a half, we have been able to repatriate over 2,200 uh Indian citizens from cyber scam compounds uh in Myamar, especially in the bordering regions in southeast Myamar. Uh as of now uh from the latest counts we have possibly slightly over 150 odd Indian citizens that we know of about whom we have reports who are still stuck in some of these cyber scam compounds and we are trying to uh we are in discussions with the with the yes it's I've just been told that the number repatriated is over 2,400. So 2,411 uh people have been repatriated. So uh we are in touch with the Myamma government uh to try and repatriate the the remaining uh people uh as well and uh it's it's important to note that you know while the Indian nationals remain trapped there they are usually trafficked there through a third country and that just underlines the need for not just more bilateral cooperation related to this issue which is also a security issue between the two countries but also underlines the need for greater regional cooperation on this matter uh in uh this particular uh region. So we have this was raised today as well and we have raised it in several other uh bilateral uh forums between the two uh countries.

[00:15:39]Um there was yeah Shui your question on uh uh the two significant connectivity related projects that we have the Kaladan multimodal uh transit transport project and the India Thailand trilateral highway project. You're right. These projects have been underway uh for several years and uh they have uh been delayed uh in in most cases and certainly right now the uh obstacle that faces both of these projects is the security situation uh in Myammar. The Kaladan uh highway uh is in an area where there is uh where there are active hostilities going on right now. uh between the uh Myama army and uh the uh ethnic armies in uh Rakine state. uh whereas the uh section of the uh trilateral highway uh where work was uh underway and has gone on in fits and starts uh in recent years as well is again in an area where ethnic armed groups uh and the PDFs uh are uh quite active uh and in uh engaging in hostilities with the Myamar army.

[00:17:02]Obviously in these circumstances it's a little difficult to meet uh preset uh targets and dates. Uh nevertheless uh we have continued to engage with the Myama authorities and uh wherever there has been a possibility uh to take forward uh the work uh by utilizing either lulls in fighting or uh by uh securing uh making sure that the security of the workers of the teams of workers is not going to be impacted. we have been able to uh move forward but uh this is something that that uh remains a major priority. It was raised by prime minister today with uh the president and the president once again uh gave his assurance that uh would do everything uh to ensure that these projects moved forward uh towards uh completion.

[00:18:02]Um Kesha your question related to internal security.

[00:18:09]Well, one aspect of internal security is obviously what I have referred to just now in answer to several questions which is the uh the u uh fighting that is going on uh in in different parts of the country especially around the peripheries uh between the military and the ethnic armed uh groups. Uh the other part or other aspect of internal security is obviously the effort by uh the Myamma state to bring all the uh ethnic uh armed organizations and the groups uh onto a single platform uh to advance the peace process uh which is essentially an effort to see how the current uh structure of governance or the system of government that Myama has, what kinds of changes might be needed in that so that uh something is crafted around which there is broad national consensus and then uh move forward on that basis and uh uh this is something uh in which uh we have we obviously have an interest because uh as I uh have said that uh you know uh stability and peace uh in Myamar is obviously a major uh interest uh for uh India, not just for the uh security uh of the uh northeast uh and and uh the safety and security of people living along the 1,643 km long border that we have with them. uh but also for our interests such as connectivity uh to Southeast Asia and obviously security and stability in Myammar is also important for the coherence of ASEAN as a whole as well because Myamar is an important and large country within the ASEAN framework as well. So these security related matters are obviously uh very important for us. Apart from that, of course, there is the very important question of the activities of Indian insurgent groups uh in Myamar close to our uh borders. And this is something again that the prime minister raised with uh the president and the president uh once again uh reiterated his assurance that uh Myamma was sensitive to these concerns and uh again would do everything uh necessary to ensure that the uh that there was action against these and these did not become a cause of uh threat uh of uh against the security of of uh India. So um uh the uh the the koda to your question about a myamalled solution is essentially in the context of the peace process. We have always believed that eventually the difficulties that face my will have to be sorted out by the people of Myamar talking amongst themselves. This will have to be a mama solution and a mamaowned uh solution. So uh the uh I don't think from the outside anybody has uh any readymade solutions uh to offer uh mama uh yes we can offer uh experiences we can share experiences and as a matter of fact that is what India has done and been doing consistently over several years uh even as uh Myammar or authorities in Myamar have sought to uh you know learn more about uh the system of constitutional governance or uh federalism as a a form of uh governance. Uh they obviously look next door at India and see an example worth following or emulating. And in this context uh the our embassy in uh Myamma and uh the ministry of external affairs have been cooperating with uh authorities in Myamma to organize um workshops and seminars uh where there is uh extensive discussion on India's uh nearly eight decadel long experience uh of uh constitutional governance of uh federalism And uh I do believe that these are seen as uh very very valuable uh lessons by uh our friends in Mam. I think we >> so we can take last two questions sir.

[00:22:52]one from here. Nirj samaraki sirtheast.

[00:23:21]Sad news.

[00:24:02]Last question.

[00:24:04]Vin D from Newsgate.

[00:24:15]Free movement.

[00:24:33]Sir, we can take these questions. Okay.

[00:24:37]Um [clears throat] groups activities. He's good.

[00:25:12]inab Foreign authorities.

[00:26:21]Authorities or uh Madrid.

[00:26:58]Bangladesh Bangladeshi.

[00:27:25]contact.

[00:27:45]My refugees delays project execution deadline.

[00:28:19]conflict.

[00:28:31]Exactly.

[00:28:49]Free movement guarding forces.

[00:29:12]territory.

[00:29:25]Praduct.

[00:29:51]entry point gates basis colleague.

[00:30:14]>> Uh that's it sir.

[00:30:16]>> Thank you sir. With that ladies gentlemen we come to the close of this press briefing. Thank you very much >> and that was a special media briefing by the ministry of external affairs on Myanmar president's visit to India. Uh the briefing said that India happens to be the first country that the president is visiting since he assumed the office as the president. Myanmar is an important country. Five cabinet and three deputy ministers along with other senior officials are currently accompanying the president with him. The visit began with both Ga's visit and showcases the deep put links and strong people-to-people ties both the nations share. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the president of Myanmar held detailed talks that cover trade, economic ties, defense, strategic border management and both sides also expressed interest in forging closer cooperation. And with this it's a wrap here on DD India live.

[00:31:08]Thank you so much for joining us right now. Namaskar.

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