Kathmandu, Oct. 16: President Bidya Devi Bhandari is paying a state visit to the Republic of the Union of Myanmar from 16 to 20 October 2019, at the friendly invitation of the President of Myanmar U Win Myint.
During the visit, the President will hold bilateral talks with President U Win Myint. Likewise, State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi will call on the President. The President of Myanmar will host a State Banquet in honour of President Bhandari and her delegation, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
During her stay in Myanmar, the President will meet the citizens of Myanmar of Nepali origin in Pyin Oo Lyin. She will visit Bagan, a UNESCO world heritage site. The President will also visit Yangon. While in Yangon, she will visit places of historical and cultural importance, says a press release issued by the Ministry here today.
The members in the delegation of the President include Minister for Foreign Affairs Pradeep Kumar Gyawali, the Foreign Secretary, the Secretary at the Office of the President and other high-ranking officials from the Office of the President and Ministry of Foreign Affairs as well as media persons.
The delegation of the President will leave Kathmandu on Wednesday morning on a Nepal Airlines flight to Naypyitaw, the capital of Myanmar via Bangkok, Thailand.
Nepal and Myanmar enjoy 150-year-old relations, with Buddhist religion bringing the two countries closer. Diplomatic relations were first established on March 19, 1960 at the ambassador-level. Nepal and Myanmar both are members of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC). The last high-level visit to Myanmar from Nepal was by then Prime Minister Sushil Koirala in March 2014 to attend the BIMSTEC Summit.