New Delhi has said that its “framework” of dealing with Myanmar was significantly "different" from that of the US, amid divergence in outlooks of the two capitals on ties with the southeast Asian nation.
“Let’s not forget that we have a large border with Myanmar. Myanmar is our neighbor. The kind of framework in which we deal with our relationship with Myanmar is very different (from that of the US),” Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra told a press conference in New Delhi on Monday.
The briefing was organized on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s upcoming official state visit to the US and Egypt. The two-nation tour will commence on June 21.
“We have continued with our extensive humanitarian assistance and developmental cooperation with Myanmar even during the times Myanmar was troubled, so to speak,” the Indian foreign secretary stated.
He said that New Delhi has also continued with its “capacity-building programmes” in the Myanmar in spite of western countries imposing sanctions against entities linked to Myanmar’s military-led government which came to power after the January 2021 military coup.
India has also hosted over 35,000 Myanmar refugees who have fled their country since fighting between government and opposition forces intensified last year.
Many of these refugees live in the border state of Mizoram.
The US, with which India is involved in the Quad grouping, has blamed the military leadership for the worsening “political, economic, and humanitarian crisis” in the country which has left over 1.5 million people displaced as opposition forces battle the government forces across the country.
A joint statement by Quad countries — Australia, India, Japan, and the US — at the Hiroshima summit this year reiterated previous calls for an “immediate cessation of violence” and a dialogue for resolution of the situation.
It also expressed support for the Association of Southeast Asian Nation (ASEAN)-led efforts to resolve the crisis, including the implementation of the ‘Five-Point Consensus’.