TOKYO: Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono conveyed serious concern over Myanmar’s Rohingya Muslims to the country’s leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, in a meeting on Friday in the capital Naypyidaw, Japan’s Kyodo news agency reported.
Separately, the Japanese government announced emergency grant aid of 330 million yen ($2.97 million) to Myanmar to help members of the minority who return to Myanmar from Bangladesh.
Myanmar’s army launched a sweeping offensive in the north of the western state of Rakhine in response to Rohingya militant attacks on Aug. 25, triggering an exodus of more than 650,000 Rohingya villagers to Bangladesh.
Myanmar and Bangladesh signed an agreement on the repatriation of Rohingya refugees on Nov. 23, and Myanmar said it would start the process by Jan 23. The exact numbers and extent of the repatriation is still unclear.
“We have decided to provide the aid in response to the agreement between Myanmar and Bangladesh to represent an international message of support so that the repatriation can be carried out promptly,” said Foreign Ministry official Shinobu Yamaguchi in a statement.
Kono’s three-day visit to Myanmar includes traveling to Rakhine state.
More than 650,000 Rohingya have fled to Bangladesh to escape a brutal crackdown in which security forces have been accused of systematic abuses tantamount to ethnic cleansing.
During Friday’s meeting, Kono asked Suu Kyi’s government to allow humanitarian and media access to the affected area, the resettlement of returned refugees, and the implementation of recommendations made by former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan.
Kono also said Japan plans to give further aid to improve humanitarian conditions and development in Rakhine state.
“We are thankful to Japan for its willingness to support the needs both for short term and long term,” Suu Kyi said at the joint news conference.
Yamaguchi stressed that Japan will monitor how the repatriation will be carried out. “The money will be paid in a timely manner based on the progress of repatriation,” Yamaguchi added.
Myanmar’s state-run media on Wednesday said authorities have started the land work to construct buildings to accommodate returned refugees from Bangladesh in northern Rakhine, where refugees will be temporarily placed after their citizenship is scrutinized.
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Japan conveys concern over Rohingya to Suu Kyi
Japan conveys concern over Rohingya to Suu Kyi
US warships arrive off coast of Haiti
- US embassy in Haiti says flotilla sent as a part of ‘Operation Southern Spear’
- US military campaign targets alleged drug traffickers in the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific
WASHINGTON: US military officials said Tuesday American warships had arrived off the coast of Haiti, as the island country’s leaders cling to power in their ongoing war against violent drug gangs.
The USS Stockdale, USCGC Stone and USCGC Diligence entered the Bay of Port-au-Prince to “reflect the United States unwavering commitment to Haiti’s security, stability and a brighter future,” the US embassy in Haiti posted on X.
The flotilla was sent “at the direction of the Secretary of War” Pete Hegseth as a part of “Operation Southern Spear,” the statement said, referring to the US military campaign targeting alleged drug traffickers in the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific that has killed more than 100 people in boat strikes.
After facing years of violence and instability, Haiti is entering a new phase of political turbulence in the days before the official end of the mandate for the country’s Presidential Transitional Council on February 7.
Gang violence forced the resignation in 2024 of a previous prime minister, Ariel Henry, and the country has not held elections since 2016, with government authority collapsing in much of the country, leading to overlapping security, health and economic crises.
Haiti is the poorest country in the Western hemisphere, with swaths of the country under the control of rival armed gangs who carry out murders, rapes and kidnappings.
The US recently announced new visa restrictions targeting senior officials, who are accused of supporting gangs.
The USS Stockdale, USCGC Stone and USCGC Diligence entered the Bay of Port-au-Prince to “reflect the United States unwavering commitment to Haiti’s security, stability and a brighter future,” the US embassy in Haiti posted on X.
The flotilla was sent “at the direction of the Secretary of War” Pete Hegseth as a part of “Operation Southern Spear,” the statement said, referring to the US military campaign targeting alleged drug traffickers in the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific that has killed more than 100 people in boat strikes.
After facing years of violence and instability, Haiti is entering a new phase of political turbulence in the days before the official end of the mandate for the country’s Presidential Transitional Council on February 7.
Gang violence forced the resignation in 2024 of a previous prime minister, Ariel Henry, and the country has not held elections since 2016, with government authority collapsing in much of the country, leading to overlapping security, health and economic crises.
Haiti is the poorest country in the Western hemisphere, with swaths of the country under the control of rival armed gangs who carry out murders, rapes and kidnappings.
The US recently announced new visa restrictions targeting senior officials, who are accused of supporting gangs.
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