Myanmar has assured China of taking back Rohingyas: Momen

Myanmar has assured China of taking back the Rohingyas sheltered in Cox's Bazar, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi passed this message to Bangladesh's Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen during a phone call Thursday evening when there was a donors' conference led by the Western countries.

Wang Yi said China has been maintaining communication with Myanmar on the Rohingya repatriation.

Myanmar informed China it was working to take back the Rohingyas as the COVID-19 situation improves, said a foreign ministry statement today, quoting the Chinese minister as saying.

Wang Yi told Momen, Myanmar wants to start anew discussion on Rohingya repatriation after the national election in Myanmar, scheduled for November 8.

Also read: Int'l community pledges $597 million humanitarian assistance for Rohingyas

First, a meeting at ambassador-level and then a trilateral meeting among China, Bangladesh and Myanmar will be held.

The Chinese minister stressed on trilateral senior official-level meeting in Dhaka at the soonest.

He assured Momen of providing Chinese vaccine for COVID-19 to Bangladesh on priority basis and expressed his interest to work with Bangladesh in the post-COVID economic recovery.

Wang Yi lauded Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's leadership in tackling the coronavirus pandemic and promised continuation of Chinese assistances towards this end.

He also told AK Abdul Momen that the Chinese-funded projects that slowed down due to the pandemic will be sped up soon after the improvement of COVID-19 situation.

Wang Yi said Chinese government is confident that Bangladesh will ensure justice for the killing of a Chinese citizen in Pirojpur and that it will ensure safety of all Chinese nationals working in Bangladesh.

In response, Momen said Bangladesh police have already arrested two accused in the killing of the Chinese national and that their trial will be completed at the soonest.

Momen requested his Chinese counterpart to renew the visas of Bangladeshi students, who study in China, now stranded in Bangladesh. Wang Yi said China has not yet decided on the entry of foreign students to China, but Bangladeshis will get priority when a decision is taken in this regard.

Momen thanked Wang Yi for the initiative of translating in Chinese the book "Amar Dekha Naya Chin [The New China I Saw]" written by Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.