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India, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh form regional group

India, Thailand, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka formed a regional trade group on Friday, and delegates said Myanmar should join within a year despite international concerns over its human rights record.

Foreign ministry officials from the four countries, all of which have a coastline on the Bay of Bengal, signed into existence the Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka, Thailand Economic Cooperation and voiced hopes it would become a regional powerhouse.

Trade between the countries currently totals a meagre one billion dollars, but with a joint population of 1.3 billion people hopes are strong that a predicted economic boom in South Asia will push up the figure over the next decade.

Kobsak Chutikul, director of economic affairs at the Thai foreign ministry, said the South Asian countries currently account for two per cent of Thailand's trade.

Myanmar originally expressed interest in becoming a founding member, but settled for dialogue status on Friday. Officials from the other countries said vaguely that Myanmar was not ready but indicated it would become a full member within a year.

Bangladesh State Minister for Foreign Affairs Bismillahir Rahim told mediapersons that human rights issues would not block Myanmar's entry into the group.

Myanmar's military regime scored a diplomatic coup last week by winning approval to enter the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in July. ASEAN rejected calls by many countries, including the United States, to keep Myanmar out for its repressive measures against the pro-democracy movement led by Nobel peace prize-winner Aung San Suu Kyi.

Economic liberalisation policies recently undertaken by the South Asian countries, especially India, were cited on Friday as a sign of the group's economic potential.

The United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific will advise the group on co-operation projects in areas such as tourism, trade, investment and infrastructure.

''Our basic emphasis is on projects that have tangible results on jobs and standards of living,'' Chutikul said.

Officials hope the new group will act as a link between ASEAN, of which Thailand is a key member, and the South Asian Association of Regional Countries that includes India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.

The group has already discussed the possibility of forming a regional airline, owned by all four governments, to service smaller destinations in each country, Chutikul said.

Other projects include establishing a tourist circuit along religious themes such as Buddhist religious sites in all four countries, said India's Minister of State for Health Saleem Sherwani.

The BIST-EC trade group will be headquartered in Bangkok and the group will rotate annual minister-level meetings in all four capitals.

UNI