BANGKOK ¨C Less than two months after he completed a carefully engineered transition from Myanmar¡¯s junta chief to become president, Min Aung Hlaing will fly to India on an official visit on Saturday, his first overseas visit since taking the civilian role.
The five-day trip, during which the former general will hold talks with Indian Prime Minister Narendra ?Modi, underscores the gradual return of regional re-engagement for Myanmar, five years after many of its neighbors shunned the Southeast ?Asian nation¡¯s military ?leadership following a coup.
For India, the visit is an opportunity to dilute China¡¯s outsized influence ?on Myanmar while working to secure access to the country¡¯s deposits of critical rare earths, and bolster security along its northeastern borders, analysts said.
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