SUBANG, April 5- Foreign Minister, Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan, today begins a one-day visit to Myanmar as part of a humanitarian mission following the devastating earthquake that struck the country on March 28.
The aircraft carrying Mohamad and his delegation departed from the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) Air Base here at around 8 am and is expected to arrive at Nay Pyi Taw International Airport, Myanmar, at 9:30 am.
The humanitarian mission is jointly led by Thai Foreign Minister Maris Sangiampongsa, symbolising close ASEAN cooperation in humanitarian response and reflecting regional solidarity and support for the people of Myanmar.
Malaysia, as the ASEAN Chair, and Thailand are spearheading this initiative, as agreed upon during the ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Special Emergency Meeting chaired by Mohamad via video conference last Sunday to discuss follow-up actions in response to the disaster affecting both Myanmar and Thailand.
In a statement on Friday, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that while in Nay Pyi Taw, Mohamad and Maris are scheduled to meet with the Chairman of the State Administration Council (SAC), Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, as well as Myanmar’s Foreign Minister U Than Shwe.
The two ministers will also receive a briefing from the ASEAN Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance on disaster management (AHA Centre) regarding ongoing relief and humanitarian operations.
Additionally, Mohamad will highlight ASEAN’s coordinated disaster response efforts and Malaysia’s contributions to date, including the deployment of the Special Malaysia Disaster Assistance and Rescue Team (SMART) and the delivery of humanitarian aid.
Coinciding with the visit, Malaysia’s second batch of humanitarian aid weighing 15 tonnes will arrive in Nay Pyi Taw. The aid, coordinated through the AHA Centre, will be delivered using a Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) A400M aircraft as part of ASEAN’s collective relief efforts.
On March 30, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim announced that the Malaysian government would provide RM10 million in humanitarian aid as an initial contribution to Myanmar, which has been severely affected by the natural disaster.
On the same day, Malaysia also deployed two RMAF A400M aircraft carrying members of the SMART team and personnel from the National Disaster Management Agency (NADMA) to Myanmar for search and rescue (SAR) operations.
Apart from Malaysia, more aid began arriving from other ASEAN member states by April 1, including from Singapore and Indonesia, with additional SAR teams sent to assist in rescue and humanitarian efforts.
On March 28, a 7.7-magnitude earthquake struck Myanmar, with Mandalay, Bago, Magway, northeastern Shan State, Sagaing, and Nay Pyi Taw among the hardest-hit areas. The tremors also affected neighbouring Thailand.
As of Thursday, the death toll in Myanmar from the earthquake had risen to 3,145, with 4,589 people injured and 221 reported missing.