Navy chief expected to visit Burma

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Subject: Navy chief expected to visit Burma soon 



February 21, 1999 
THAI-BURMESE TIES

Navy chief expected to visit Burma soon

High-level trips to improve relations

Achara Ashayagachat
Bhanravee Tansubhapol
Yuwadee Tunyasiri

Commander of the Royal Thai Navy Admiral Theera Haocharoen will visit Burma
shortly, under a Thai-Burmese agreement signed yesterday and aimed at
improving
relations by exchanging high-level visits.

Foreign Minister Surin Pitsuwan made the disclosure after taking his Burmese
counterpart Win Aung to Ranong, the Thai province bordering disputed waters in
the Andaman Sea which have seen the two countries' navies drawn into clashes
sparked by illegal fishing.

Mr Surin said Admiral Theera will call on Burma's navy chief Admiral Nyunt
Thein in Rangoon, before senior military officials of the two countries
meet in
Phuket mid-March under the Regional Border Committee.

The disclosure came after Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai, during talks with Mr
Win Aung on Friday night, called for joint efforts to settle the long-standing
dispute over maritime boundaries.

The prime minister also urged the launching of a joint patrol, noting that
Vietnam had agreed to a similar arrangement as a means of curbing problems in
overlapping Thai-Vietnamese waters.

Thai-Burmese relations have soured over violent clashes in the Andaman Sea in
the past two months that have left three Thais and a number of Burmese dead.

Mr Win Aung said his trip to Ranong showed political will on both sides to
solve outstanding bilateral problems.
"The most impportant thing is improving our contacts," he said.

According to Mr Surin, the Burmese minister on Friday night noted that the
"hotline" set up last month enabled the two sides to consult each other on all
matters.

Mr Surin cited smuggling, violations of territorial waters and the levying of
transit fees as serious problems.

He emphasised the need for both sides to exercise maximum restraint, to ensure
proper identification of boats with flags.

A senior official said Admiral Theera's forthcoming visit to Rangoon will help
promote understanding between the two countries' naval forces.
Such an exchange is provided for under the May 1997 agreement between the then
Prime Minister Chavalit Yongchaiyudh and Burma's Premier Than Shwe, which the

two sides agreed to reactivate, the official added.

The naval commanders are expected to discuss confidence-building measures that
will be examined in greater depth during the upcoming meeting of the RBC,
which
has not convened for more than a year, the official said.

The Border Fishery Coordination Centre set up two years ago in Ranong has not
been as effective as hoped for since only Thailand was involved in the effort
to solve related problems, he added.

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Last Modified: Sun, Feb 21, 1999
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