Why did Modi use the crisis to show kindness to Myanmar?

Myanmar Senior Minister Aung San Suu Kyi met with visiting Indian Prime Minister Modi in Naypyidaw on the 6th. According to The Hindu's report on the 6th, the theme of the talks between the two sides is to further consolidate India-Myanmar relations. In the meantime, Modi supported the Myanmar government's efforts to crack down on Rohingya militants and called on the international community to respect Myanmar's national unity.

Modi arrived in Myanmar on the 5th and began a three-day visit to the country. Later that day, he met with Myanmar President Wu Tingjue. In order to highlight the "long history" of bilateral relations and the close cultural ties between the two countries, Modi also made a special trip to Bagan, an ancient city about 0/50 km from Naypyidaw/Kloc, the capital of Myanmar, on the 6th. In addition, in order to promote exchanges between the two countries, Modi announced a visa-free policy for Myanmar citizens to go to India.

According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Myanmar, during Modi's visit to Myanmar, India and Myanmar signed 1 1 memorandum of understanding, involving cooperation in electric power, cultural exchange, news media, information technology, medical and health care, police training, maritime security affairs, coastal monitoring system and other fields.

It is worth noting that Modi's visit to Myanmar was labeled as "wooing Myanmar". The website of India Today reported that Modi visited Myanmar and India wanted to win a key ally in the east. Reuters said that Modi's visit is intended to expand economic and trade ties between the two countries as part of his "eastward policy" to hedge against the influence from China. India's Daily News and Analysis website quoted Modi as saying, "In the context of the' eastward policy', deepening relations with neighboring Myanmar is India's priority."

In addition to consolidating relations between the two countries, Modi's visit also brought "sympathy" to Myanmar. After the meeting, Modi and Aung San Suu Kyi held a press conference at the Presidential Palace in Myanmar. According to Reuters, Modi said on the 6th that India shares Myanmar's concern about the unrest in Rakhine State, and all parties must respect Myanmar's integrity as a country. Modi said, "We hope that all stakeholders will work together to find a solution to safeguard Myanmar's unity and territorial integrity." The Indian Express said that at the press conference, Modi announced the release of 40 Burmese detained in India.

Aung San Suu Kyi thanked India for taking a firm stance on the "terrorist threat" facing the country. She said that Myanmar and India will work together to ensure that terrorism will not take root in their own countries or neighboring countries. India's "Fifth Tone" website said that both Modi and Aung San Suu Kyi stressed the need to stop terrorist activities and pay attention to the violence in Rakhine State.

Western media reported in recent days that Myanmar is facing tremendous pressure from the international community because of the riots in Rakhine State in northwestern Myanmar, which led to the flight of 10 million Rohingya refugees. Reuters said on the 6th that a Bangladeshi government official said on Wednesday that Myanmar had planted mines in the border area adjacent to Bangladesh in the past three days, probably to prevent Rohingyas who fled to Bangladesh from returning to Myanmar. Sputnik said that UN Secretary-General Guterres called on Myanmar to grant Rakhine Muslims Burmese nationality, or at least legal status, so that they can lead a normal life. Myanmar's military security forces are still carrying out military operations in Rakhine State to crack down on Islamic militants among the Luo Xing Asian people in the region. Rohingyas are regarded by Myanmar as illegal immigrants from Bangladesh, and officials refuse to recognize the Myanmar nationality of most of them. Muslims in Chechnya, Russia, Malaysia, Indonesia, Turkey and other countries launched a rally to support the Rohingya people and condemned the cruel treatment of Muslims by the Myanmar authorities.

Aung San Suu Kyi refuted the accusation of "ethnic cleansing" as "out of thin air". According to a report by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) on the 6th, Aung San Suu Kyi argued that the international sympathy for Rohingya people is based on "iceberg-like misinformation", which is helping terrorists. The British newspaper The Guardian quoted the statement of Aung San Suu Kyi's office as saying that Aung San Suu Kyi said in a telephone conversation with Turkish President Erdogan that the Myanmar government had begun to protect the safety of all residents in Rakhine State, and pointed out that the photo of "the death of Rohingya people in Myanmar" released by the Turkish Deputy Prime Minister on Twitter a few days ago was false news, and the relevant photos were taken from other places.

US media said on the 6th that Modi visited Myanmar as the Rohingya crisis intensified and leaders of Islamic countries frequently put pressure on Myanmar. The Rohingya issue will have to be put on the negotiating table together with economic and trade issues. However, it is unlikely that India and Myanmar will disagree on the Rohingya issue. At present, about 40,000 Rohingya refugees have illegally entered India, and Modi has always wanted to expel these people. Reuters also quoted Modi as saying that India and Myanmar share a common border of 65,438+0,600 kilometers and share similar security interests in the region.