SPEECH
BY SHRI K.R.NARAYANAN, PRESIDENT OF INDIA, WHILE RECEIVING CREDENTIALS FROM MR. U. KYAW THU,
AMBASSADOR-DESIGNATE OF THE UNION OF MYANMAR
NEW DELHI, DECEMBER 11, 2001
Excellency,
It gives
me great pleasure to receive from His Excellency Senior General Than Shwe,
Chairman of the State Peace & Development Council of the Union of
Myanmar, the Letter of Credence appointing you as the Ambassador Extraordinary
and Plenipotentiary of the Union of Myanmar to India. I extend a warm
welcome to you and your family to our country and hope that your stay
in India will be fruitful and enjoyable.
India
is committed to a policy of friendship and good neighbourliness with Myanmar.
We have sought to promote our shared interests by strengthening our cooperation
at the bilateral, regional and international levels.
I share
Your Excellency’s perception of the traditionally warm cultural and historical
ties which link our two countries. The exchange of high-level visits in
recent years has given an impetus to our centuries old friendship. Our
interaction has grown in intensity as well as in content. We now have
active cooperation in many fields including science & technology and
cultural exchanges. We must endeavour to keep up the momentum so that
our relationship becomes even more vigorous and rich with the passage
of time.
The
Tamu-Kalewa Highway in Myanmar which India helped to upgrade is indeed
a landmark in our bilateral cooperation. There is, however, much more
we can do together for the mutual benefit and betterment of the peoples
of Myanmar and India. I believe that we are working on other cross-border
projects which will economically benefit the two countries. I agree that
BIMST-EC adds an additional and valuable dimension to our cooperation.
I am
confident that during Your Excellency’s tenure, relations between India
and Myanmar will be further strengthened and I take this opportunity to
assure you of my Government’s full cooperation in your efforts to enhance
the existing close and cordial ties between India and Myanmar.
Please
also convey to His Excellency Senior General Than Shwe, Chairman, State
Peace & Development Council my good wishes for his good health and
personal well-being and for the progress and development of the people
of Myanmar.
Thank you
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