Israel to pay Myanmar first official visit in 35 years

Moshe Dayan made last official visit as foreign minister in 1979; developing economy attracting Israeli business entrepreneurs.

Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Tzachi Hanegbi, is due to arrive in Myanmar Wednesday, making Israel's first official visit to the Southeast Asian country in 35 years.

Moshe Dayan, when he was foreign minister, was the last Israeli to pay an official visit to Myanmar when he was there in 1979.

"Myanmar has a friendly and long standing relationship with Israel, beginning in the 1950’s, when Burma’s Prime Minister, U Nu, visited Israel (1959) and Israel’s David Ben Gurion reciprocated (1961)," the Israeli Foreign Ministry's Jerusalem Spokesperson's Bureau announced.

The bureau stated that Myanmar's intensive development of its economy makes it "an attractive destination for investors, including companies and businessmen from Israel."

Hanegbi is scheduled to meet with Foreign Minister Wanna Maung Lwin, a former Myanmar Ambassador to Israel, and political personalities, including Nobel Peace Laureate and leader of the opposition, Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi. The official visit lasts through Friday.

The two countries are slated to sign a framework cooperation agreement in culture and sport, the bureau added.