Bangladesh asks Myanmar to explain its border fencing plan

Dhaka - The government of Bangladesh on Monday asked Myanmar to clarify a planned border fence along the no-man's land along the two countries' shared border, officials said. 'We asked for an official version of the construction site of the fencing as Myanmar has given various versions of the location of fencing,' Bangladeshi State Minister for Foreign Affairs Hasan Mahmud told a press conference. Myanmar ambassador in Dhaka Phae Thann Oo met Sunday with Bangladeshi Foreign Secretary Touhid Hossain and verbally communicated his government's plan undertaken to stop smuggling. The state minister said Yangon informed Dhaka that the fencing will be 100 metres from the border line. But earlier they gave a different version and the media reported that the fencing was planned along the zero lines. 'Now we need to know the facts,' Mahmud said. The ministry also summoned the Myanmar's envoy for an explanation, and a meeting is scheduled for Tuesday morning, officials said. Bangladesh officials said that on March 15 Myanmar border force Na Sa Ka began mobilizing fencing equipment at Kyin Gun village just across the river Naaf which forms the nearby border. They also reportedly mobilized a contingent of troops as back up at some parts of the 180-kilometre border with Bangladesh. Earlier in November, Dhaka protested intrusion by Myanmar ships exploring for oil and gas in Bangladesh's territorial waters in the Bay of Bengal. Multi-pronged diplomatic efforts by Dhaka involving China and South Korea forced Myanmar to pull out its exploration ships after nearly two weeks of tensions. Both Bangladesh and Myanmar sent warships into the disputed waters of the Bay of Bengal at the time.