Myanmar assures its land won't be allowed to be used against India's security interests: Officials

New Delhi, Jul 8 (PTI) Myanmar has assured India that its territory will not be allowed to be used against New Delhi's security interests, with the two sides also agreeing to step up intelligence sharing and operational coordination to tackle common security challenges, officials said Wednesday. A high-level bilateral meeting took place during the two-day 23rd National Level bilateral meeting here that concluded on Wednesday. Reviewing the prevailing security situation along the India-Myanmar border, both sides reaffirmed the importance of maintaining peace, stability and security in the area, a government statement said. They shared the importance of working closely towards the completion of Kaladan Multi-Modal Transit Transport project and the India-Myanmar-Thailand trilateral highway. "Both sides underscored the importance of preventing the misuse of sovereign territory for activities inimical to their security interests. The Myanmar side assured that its territory would not be permitted to be used against India's security interests," the statement said. Led by the Home Secretary Govind Mohan, the Indian side underscored that Myanmar occupies an important place in New Delhi's 'Neighbourhood First, Act East and MAHASAGAR (Mutual and Holistic Advancement for Security and Growth Across Regions)' policies, the statement said. The "comprehensive and constructive discussion" hovered on bilateral security cooperation and also reviewed progress under bilateral dialogue mechanisms, it said. Both sides discussed cooperation in combating transnational crimes, including terrorism, insurgency, narcotics trafficking, arms smuggling, human trafficking, wildlife trafficking, cybercrime and other forms of organised crime, according to the statement. "They also agreed to enhance intelligence sharing and operational coordination, and undertake capacity-building initiatives to address shared security challenges effectively," it said. India and Myanmar expressed satisfaction with the outcomes of the meeting and agreed to continue close engagement and cooperation on security matters among relevant agencies through existing bilateral mechanisms, regular exchanges, training programmes and implementation of mutually agreed decisions, the statement said. PTI ABS KSS KSS