Thursday, 16/11/2017 18:47 (GMT+7)
US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson briefly visited Myanmar o n November 15th to push for an end to the violence that has plagued the country's Rakhine state.
US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson (Source: AFP/VNA)
On his five-hour visit in Myanmar, Mr. Tillerson met with Sr. Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, the nation’s military commander, and Aung San Suu Kyi, the Nobel laureate and the State Counsellor.
Mr. Tillerson was expected to hold talks about the situation in northern Rakhine state, where a government security operation has caused more than 600,000 Muslim Rohingya to flee to neighbouring Bangladesh amid widespread allegations of rights abuses.
"The crisis in Rakhine state is one of the greatest challenges Myanmar has faced since the elected government came into office last year," Mr Tillerson said in a joint news conference with Ms. Suu Kyi in Myanmar’s capital.
Mr. Tillerson added the US would consider individual sanctions against people found responsible for the violence, but he would not advise “broad-based economic sanctions” against the entire country.
The visit took place as Tillerson wraps up a 10-day trip across Asia with President Donald Trump./.
Compiled by BTA