China willing to help Bangladesh and Myanmar defuse Rohingya crisis, says foreign minister
Wang Yi uses visit to Dhaka to signal Beijing is prepared to help find peaceful solution to conflict that has displaced 600,000 people
China is willing to help Bangladesh and Myanmar solve the Rohingya crisis, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said after meeting his counterpart in Dhaka on Saturday.
More than 600,000 Rohingya Muslims have fled to Bangladesh since late August driven out by a military clearance operation in Myanmar’s Rakhine State which the United Nations has said amounts to ethnic cleansing.
Buddhist-majority Myanmar has faced growing international anger over its treatment of the Rohingya – amid widespread reports of murders and rapes committed by the armed forces – but China has helped shield the country from censure.
“China supports resolving the crisis peacefully, bilaterally with mutual consultation between Bangladesh and Myanmar,” Wang said at the Chinese embassy in Dhaka.
“It is a complex situation and needs a comprehensive solution. Economic development of Rakhine State is needed. China is ready to help.”
Wang arrived in Bangladesh on Saturday for a two-day visit and from there he will go to Myanmar to attend the Asia-Europe Meeting.
Dhaka hopes it will put pressure on Myanmar to take back hundreds of thousands of refugees.