Myanmar FM visits India to talk economic ties

As Myanmar Foreign Minister U Win Maung arrives in New Delhi today on a six-day visit to deepen the economic content in relations with India, Bangladesh could be left behind to reap the benefit from developmental spin-offs in infrastructure and energy sectors.

Cooperation in building of roads, a port in Myanmar and a gas pipeline will be high on the agenda of U Win during his talks with the Indian leadership including Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Vice-president Bhairon Singh Shekhawat, Finance Minister Jaswant Singh, External Affairs Minister Yashwant Sinha and Disinvestment Minister Arun Shourie.

India has proposed construction of two roads from Mizoram to Myanmar's Chin area in order to provide easier and cheaper transportation from mainland India to other Northeastern Indian states.

Myanmar, say officials, is keen on the road construction proposal in view of the revenue to be generated from transit trade. This, they point out, will also take care of Bangladesh's reluctance to give transit facility to India.

India has already built a road connecting Moreh (in Indian state of Manipur) and Kalemyo (in Myanmar) for border trade which has picked up in recent months.

During U Win's talks with Indian leaders, the two sides will discuss the progress in a multi-modal transport project over the Kalandan river that flows through Mizoram and Myanmar before falling into the Bay of Bengal.

The project seeks to tone up the port facility at the confluence of Kaladan and Bay of Bengal at Sittwe and will benefit transportation of goods from ports in Kolkata and other parts of India to northeastern Indian states.

India, Myanmar and Thailand are already in the task of building a road connecting northeastern India and Thailand.

The development of road links between India and Myanmar assume importance in view of the stalemate in proposal for transit through Bangladesh.

A plan is also on the drawing board to build a gas pipeline along the Kaladan river to India and officials of India and Myanmar have already done the preliminary surveys for this.

India's state-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corporation and Gas Authority of India Limited, along with South Korean company Daewoo International, are likely to search for energy in Myanmar's Rakhine province. American energy major UNOCAL proposes an energy grid connecting Myanmar, northeastern and eastern parts of India.

The two Indian oil majors have decided to pick up stakes in energy exploration in Rakhine.

Once gas pipeline between Myanmar and India materializes, it will reduce India's dependence on possible gas export from Bangladesh.

With the existing and proposed infrastructure and energy cooperation projects between India and Myanmar, Yangon is expected to play a more influential economic role in the region and further smoothen India's access to south east Asia, analysts here say.

In recent months, India and Myanmar have also strengthened their diplomatic presence in each other's territories. New Delhi has opened a consulate in Mandalay in Arakan of Myanmar and Yangon has set up one in Kolkata.

As part of his India visit, the Myanmar Foreign Minister will also visit Hyderabad, one of India's information technology hubs, and Kolkata.