Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday met Myanmar’s Minister for Foreign Affairs and reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to strengthening bilateral relations between the two countries.

During the meeting, the prime minister stressed the importance of enhancing cooperation in people-to-people contacts, trade and other areas of mutual interest. He also appreciated Myanmar’s support for Pakistan’s engagement with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), noting that closer ties with the regional bloc would help expand economic and diplomatic cooperation.

The Myanmar foreign minister conveyed messages of goodwill from his country’s leadership and expressed a strong desire to deepen bilateral relations across multiple sectors.

Earlier, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar held wide ranging talks with Myanmar’s Foreign Minister Than Swe in Islamabad as part of a renewed push to revive relations after a prolonged gap in high level exchanges.Than Swe arrived in Pakistan on January 24 for a four day official visit.

Addressing a joint press conference Dar said both sides reviewed the full spectrum of bilateral ties and agreed to enhance cooperation in political, trade, humanitarian and cultural fields. Emphasis was placed on people-to-people exchanges, academic collaboration and religious tourism particularly Pakistan’s Buddhist heritage.

The two countries also signed a memorandum of understanding on political consultations institutionalising regular dialogue. Both sides expressed confidence that the talks would pave the way for closer cooperation in the coming years.