State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi will open the Cities and Kings: Ancient Treasure from Myanmar exhibition at Singapore’s Asia Civilization Museum on Thursday as part of celebrations to commemorate 50 years of diplomatic relations between Singapore and Burma.
The State Counselor will visit Singapore from Wednesday to Friday this week at the invitation of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, who invited her during his trip to Burma in June.
The Prime Minister will be present together with the State Counselor at the exhibition’s opening event.
The exhibition displays art and cultural heritage of Burma and will be open to the public for three months, according to Burma’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
“We have been commemorating 50 years of relations between the two countries this year and this trip also marks the anniversary,” said U Kyaw Zay Ya, the foreign affairs ministry spokesperson.
Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s visit coincides with the launch of visa exempt travel for 30 days between Myanmar and Singapore effective Dec. 1, said U Kyaw Zay Ya.
The two countries reached the visa agreement during the Singaporean Prime Minister’s visit to Burma earlier this year.
The State Counselor will be accompanied by representatives from the ministries of commerce and national planning and finance but it is not likely that new treaties or memorandums of understanding will be signed during this trip.
The two countries are in negotiations on a bilateral investment treaty and the renewal of a memorandum of understanding on the Avoidance of Double Taxation agreement.
Daw Aung San Suu Kyi will also meet some of the more than 100,000 Burmese nationals living and working in Singapore.
Singaporean support for vocational training in Burma and further bilateral agreements on tourism and trade are also under discussion.
Singapore is the second largest investor in Burma after China so far this year with a total of S$17.7 billion (US$13 billion) investment between January and April of 2016.
