Myanmar signs agreement for sustainable repatriation of citizens from Bangladesh

- Myanmar signs agreement for "sustainable" repatriation of citizens from Bangladesh.

- Joint working group to be formed between both countries.

- Agreement is signed days after the U.S. imposed several sanctions including withdrawal of military assistance on Myanmar.
After a joint meeting with Bangladeshi officials, Myanmar has agreed for Rohingya Muslims who fled the recent violence in Rakhine state to return to the country.

Myanmar's Home Affairs Minister Lieutenant General Kyaw Swe and Bangladesh's Home Secretary Mostafa Kamal Uddin signed two memorandums of understanding in Naypyidaw where they met to discuss plans to repatriate hundreds of thousands of Rohingya refugees who fled to Bangladesh after a brutal military crackdown in northern Rakhine in response to terrorist attacks on Aug. 25.

Last month, Myanmar and Bangladesh agreed to begin a process to repatriate the refugees under a 1993 agreement that allows the return of Rohingya who can prove residence in Myanmar. This however may be extremely difficult for many of the Rohingya Muslims who have fled burnt homes and properties.

"The Myanmar authorities have informed our honorable minister that the joint working group will be formed by Nov. 30," Sharif Mahmud Apu, the public relations officer of Bangladesh's Home Ministry, told BenarNews, an RFA-affliated online news service, on Tuesday.

"They have also assured us that they will take the Rohingya refugees back," he said.

A statement issued later in the day said that Bangladesh's Home Ministry said Myanmar authorities agreed to a "sustainable" repatriation of Myanmar citizens from Bangladesh, but avoided referring to the refugees as Rohingya.

This will be the most notable move from Myanmar since the violence began in August and it has come days after the U.S. imposed several sanctions on the country including withdrawal of militart assistance.

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