Myanmar, Bangladesh to hold ministerial meeting on Rohingya issue

Rohingya Muslim people at a temporary shelter in western Myanmar (Photo: VNA)

New Delhi (VNA) – Myanmar and Bangladesh will hold a ministerial meeting to discuss the humanitarian crisis faced by thousands of Rohingya Muslims, according to an announcement at the end of the 13th Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) Foreign Ministers’ Meeting on November 21.

The meeting is scheduled to take place on November 22. Foreign Minister of Bangladesh Abul Hassen Mahmud Ali will attend the meeting, with Myanmar State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi also likely to participate.

At a press conference, Suu Kyi did not specify the time period needed to reach an agreement that would allow the return, under safe conditions, of more than 618,000 members of the Rohingya Muslim community that have sought refuge in Bangladesh.

Rohingya Muslims began fleeing from Myanmar’s Rakhine state in huge numbers after government clearing operations began in late August, after Rohingya insurgents attacked security outposts.

Myanmar and Bangladesh have previously worked to solve the crisis but the upcoming meeting will be the first time the two countries address the issue at the ministerial level.

The United Nations and the European Union have repeatedly urged the two countries to initiate talks to solve the crisis.-VNA