Najib Arrives In Nay Pyi Taw For Asean Summit

NAY PYI TAW (Myanmar), May 10. Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak arrived here today to attend the 24th Asean Summit and its related summit starting today.

The special aircraft carrying the prime minister and his wife Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor, touched down at the Nay Phi Taw International Airport at 2.30pm local time.

They were greeted on arrival by the Malaysian Ambassador to Myanmar Datuk Dr Ahmad Faisal Muhamad, Myanmar's Union Minister for Rail Transport U Than Htay and his wife, Daw Soe Wut Yee.

Najib, who is leading the Malaysian delegation to the two-day summit, is scheduled to attend a welcome dinner by Myanmar President U Thein Sein for the Asean Heads of State and Government tonight.

Tomorrow, he will attend the opening ceremony, Plenary and Retreat Session of the summit, where leaders are expected to adopt the Nay Pyi Taw Declaration and terms of reference of the Asean Secretary-General as the Asean Humanitarian Assistance Coordinator.

Najib will also attend a series of sideline meetings with representatives of the Asean Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (Aipa), Civil Society Organisations, Asean youth, the 10th Brunei-Indonesia-Malaysia-the Philippines - East Asean Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA) and the 8th Indonesia-Malaysia-Thailand Growth Triangle (IMT-GT).

The Asean Summit serves as a platform for the regional leaders to take stock of and review the implementation of the roadmap for the establishment of the Asean Community.

This meeting also provides the leaders an avenue to exchange views on the future direction of Asean and its conduct of external relations as well as several regional and international issues.

Myanmar has chairmanship of the Asean Summit for the first time this year after joining the grouping in 1997.

The 24th Asean Summit is themed, "Moving Forward in Unity to a Peaceful and Prosperous Community".

Formed in 1967, Asean or the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, groups Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand, the Philippines and Vietnam. BERNAMA

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