According to Mae Hong Son Chamber of Commerce Chairperson Supoj Klinpraneed, the seminar was organized by the Thai Ambassador in Yangon, H.E. Aphirat Wieanrawee, who invited leading Thai entrepreneurs from various industries to exchange business ideas with their Myanmar counterparts.

It has been revealed from the seminar that the Myanmar investors were seeking higher trading partnership with Thailand before the upcoming 2015 AEC. Mr. Supoj said that the neighboring country had good relations with China, India and Singapore.

He added that Myanmar businesspeople had confidence in their Thai counterparts and expressed their wish for the Thai medical sector, famous for its cost effective services; Smithivej or Bamrungrad Hospitals just to name a few, to join a business venture with Myanmar too.

They also proposed easing visa restrictions to allow their citizens to enter Thailand provided that quite a number of their students studying in Thailand and the prospect of turning Thachilek-Maesai border checkpoint into an international trade route which Mr Supoj purported to be linking China, Laos and Vietnam.

In terms of investment, Myanmar investors encouraged Thailand to promote the development of deep water pier in Tavoy and business opportunities at Singkhon checkpoint in Kanchanaburi and to the Thailand’s southern region on Song Island in Ranong which was connected to Tavoy in Myanmar. Meanwhile, the establishment of a central bank had also been proposed to facilitate the currency exchange between the two nations.

Mr. Supoj stated further that Myanmar suggested that the private sector from both countries should meet every three months to discuss trading issues and raise the matters to their respective government accordingly. He said among the issues was the opening and closing periods of the border checkpoint which had not been clear at this point.

Evaluation of the effects and total damage caused to EXIM by the former PM will be completed by this week, according to Deputy Finance Minister, Prutichai Damrongrat.

Finance Minister, Korn Chatikavanij, has appointed units under the ministry to expedite the transfer of the seized money of Mr Thaksin to the treasury, collection of unpaid tax and investigations into other damages caused to government units.

The deputy minister added that preliminary investigations confirmed Myanmar was very cooperative in its debt payment.

The ministry will also review the past collection of excise tax since the court ruled that the former premier’s conversion of concession payments to excise tax had benefited his then Advance Info Service (AIS) company.

The Supreme Court ruled on 26 February to confiscate 46 billion THB worth of assets of Mr Thaksin on the grounds of modifying legislation to benefit his telecom business.

Speaking after the Energy Policy and Planning Committee’s meeting, Energy Minister Wannarat Channukul said the deal would allow the import of natural gas from Block M9 in the Gulf of Martaban in Myanmar. The source could commercially produce over 300 million cubic feet of gas per day, of which 60 million cubic feet are for domestic use. The rest are to be supplied to Thailand starting in 2013.

Moreover, the committee also approved an MOU to purchase electricity from Nam Ngum 3 Hydropower Project of Laos. The project has a production capacity of 440 megawatts. The MoU is expected to be signed by January 2010 after it is approved by the Ministerial Council.

So far there is no clear evidence that the Southeast Asian country, Thailand’s neighbour to the west, has such a facility but if it does, it will be forced to leave the organisation because operating a nuclear plant violates a regional pact which states that ASEAN will be a nuclear free zone, said Mr Surin.

Mr Surin was responding to Western media reports which said recently that impoverished Myanmar was building a secret nuclear reactor and plutonium facilities with the help of North Korea and aims to have a nuclear bomb in five years.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton during the ASEAN meeting in Thailand’s Phuket last month also warned about possible nuclear links between the two countries. She said the communist-state could be sharing atomic technology with military-ruled Myanmar which could pose a major threat to the region.

“ASEAN (government) leaders will have to jointly consider on the issue. If (Myanmar) is found guilty then it will be forced to leave ASEAN,” said Mr. Surin, adding that so far there is no sign that the country has built such facilities.

Myanmar along with Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Singapore, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam are ASEAN members.

Touching on the court delay in issuing a verdict against Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi and two housekeepers following
the May 3 incident in which American John William Yettaw allegedly swam across a lake to her home and stayed there for two days, Mr Surin said he believed the postponement probably so the verdict to be issued would not impact the feelings of the international community.

The verdict must be transparent before general elections, otherwise Myanmar authorities would not have reason to back their claims to the international community, and it would also put pressure on ASEAN, he said.

If convicted, Mrs Suu Kyi, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate who has been under house arrest since 1989 could face up to five years in prison, which would prevent her from participating the general elections that the junta has scheduled for 2010.

Myanmar court has postponed the verdict until Tuesday. (TNA)

Earlier, the Myanmar military junta had assailed Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva as the ASEAN Chair for penetrating Myanmar’s internal operation in regards to the case of opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

Democrat Party Spokesperson Buranat Samutharak asserted that the declaration made by the Prime Minister came after a discussion with Foreign Ministries of nine countries, including Thailand. He reasoned that security affecting one country did affect all ASEAN nations, and regional collaboration was necessary.

Medical Doctor Buranat added that during the past ASEAN Summit, the Myanmar leader had already promised other ASEAN nation leaders to take action in regards to politics leading to democracy in the country.

Therefore, MD Buranat said the Democrat Party would give full support to further the relationship and frame work collaborations between ASEAN and Myanmar. In addition, ASEAN would persuade Myanmar not to create newer conditions leading to conflict, especially the detention of opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

MD Buranat said the Democrat Party had been closely working with other political parties in the ASEAN region, adding that their representatives would travel to meet with Deputy House Speaker today to support Mr. Abhisit’s stance towards this issue.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon earlier told reporters that he is ‘deeply concerned about what has happening in Myanmar’ and he will visit Myanmar ‘as soon as possible’ to press for the release of opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi and other political prisoners.

Following the news regarding Ban Ki-moon’s Myanmar visit, Prime Minister Abhisit said that it will be carried out as planned, after being scheduled earlier in April.

“Recently, UN and Myanmar have worked directly together and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) welcomes this initiative,’ said the Thai premier. “We do hope the UN chief’s visit will help ease the problems and the situation there.”

Mr. Abhisit also said that the Thai ambassador to Myanmar, Bansarn Bunnag had met Mrs. Suu Kyi at Insein Prison in Yangon where she has been detained for breaching the terms of house arrest.

The Thai ambassador had discussed with the Nobel laureate over the ASEAN stance and asked her to tell about the incident.

Mrs. Suu Kyi, whose six-term house arrest will end on May 27, was put on trial on Monday after Myanmar authorities discovered that a 53-year-old American, John Yettaw, swam to her lakeside home and spent two nights there.

As ASEAN chair, the Thai premier expressed the ASEAN stance that the regional bloc is closely monitoring the situation in Myanmar and has been regularly discussing the issue among the ASEAN members.

“We want the UN to play an active role in solving Myanmar’s problem,” Mr. Abhisit affirmed.

The Thai premier said it cannot be predicted how the situation will unfold on May 27 when Suu Kyi’s house arrest term ends, but international community and ASEAN have expressed clear stance over the issue.

Thailand, as chair of ASEAN, earlier called for the immediate release of the Myanmar opposition leader, expressing its “grave concern” about Mrs. Suu Kyi’s situation given her fragile health.

Meanwhile, Thai Foreign Ministry spokesman Tharit Jarungwat said the Myanmar issue will be discussed at the 9th Asia-Europe Foreign Ministerial Meeting (FMM 9) in Hanoi, scheduled from May 22-25, as well as at the 17th ASEAN-EU Ministerial Meeting in Phnom Penh on May 27-28.

Mr. Tharit said that it is good opportunity as the foreign ministers of the ten ASEAN members will attend both meetings. (TNA