BIMSTEC Summit will be held tomorrow

New Delhi, Nov 12 (UNI) The Second Summit of Heads of state/Government from seven countries of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) will be held here tomorrow to devise ways for enhancing all round cooperation among BIMSTEC countries and bringing South Asia and South East Asia closer.

The Summit, preceded by the 11th BIMSTEC Foreign Ministerial Meeting today and the 13th Senior Officials meeting held yesterday, is likely to finalise several deliverables for the region on Energy, Counter Terrorism, transnational crime, climate change and Culture, sources said here today.

The Senior Officials' Meeting was likely to finalise and recommend to the Ministerial meeting today and the Summit Meeting a BIMSTEC Convention on Combating International Terrorism, Transnational Organised Crime and Illicit Drug Trafficking, sources said.

The Convention would enhance the cooperation in combating terrorism in the BIMSTEC region.

Leaders of all seven BIMSTEC countries are attendng the Summit.

These include Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa, Bangladesh Chief Advisor Fakhruddin Ahmed, Bhutan Prime Minister Lyonchhen Jigmi Y Thinley, Myanmar Prime Minister Gen Thein Sein, Nepalese Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda' and Thailand Prime Minister Somchai Wangsawat, besides Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

Dr Singh will hold bilateral meetings with all Heads of State/Government of the BIMSTEC member countries on the sidelines of the Summit.

Officials said during the bilateral meetings, the Prime Minister is expected to raise with Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa the issue of Sri Lankan Tamils and that of restoration of democracy in Myanmar with Myanmar's Prime Minister Gen Thein Seim. MORE UNI RB BDP BD1958