On 12 – 13 February 2018, H.E. Mr. Virasakdi Futrakul, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Thailand, attended the Second Signing Ceremony of the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement in Nay Pyi Taw at the invitation of the Myanmar Government to witness the signing of the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement by the New Mon State Party (NMSP) and Lahu Democratic Union (LDU).

          This second signing ceremony constitutes a significant progress in Myanmar’s Peace Process under Daw Aung San Suu Kyi administration and the National League for Democracy – led government. The first signing ceremony was held in 2015 under the Union Solidarity and Development Party – led government at which 8 ethnic armed groups signed the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement.  

          Thailand’s presence as an international witness signatory underlines our policy to support Myanmar’s peace and reconciliation process. Myanmar’s peace and prosperity are key to the development of our “natural strategic partnership” based on mutual interests and benefits.

          Similar with the first signing ceremony, representatives from 6 countries and international organizations were invited to officiate and witness the second signing ceremony, consisting of (1) H.E. Mr. Virasakdi Futrakul, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Thailand; (2) H.E. Mr. Sun Guoxiang, Special Envoy on Asian Affairs of People's Republic of China; (3) H.E. Mr. Yohei Sasakawa, Special Envoy of the Government of Japan for National Reconciliation in Myanmar and Chairman of the Nippon Foundation; (4) Mr. Rajinder Khanna, Deputy National Security Adviser of India; (5) H.E. Mr. Kristian Schmidt, Ambassador of the European Union to Myanmar; and (6) Mrs. Shamshad Akhtar, Executive Secretary of the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific.

          On the occasion, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Thailand held a bilateral meeting with H.E. U Kyaw Tint Swe, Union Minister for the Office of the State Counsellor of Myanmar, who has played an essential role in Myanmar’s Peace Process and the situation in Rakhine State. Deputy Foreign Minister reiterated the Thai side’s readiness to support Myanmar’s ongoing peace process as well as to address the situation in Rakhine State at its root cause in a sustainable matter. The Thai side reiterated its readiness to share best practices and expertise on management of stateless people and the New Theory of Agriculture based on Sufficiency Economy Philosophy, as an applicable model for Myanmar in the pursuit of sustainable development for its people including those in Rakhine State.