PM discusses Rohingya crisis with Myanmar military chief

The Myanmar top commander met with Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha and Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwan separately to brief the Thai leaders on the situation and other issues concerning bilateral ties. 
The situation of the Rohingya – who, using the term preferred by his Myanmar counterpart, Prawit referred to as “Bengalis” – was now under control and would have no implications for Thailand. “They might not be able to take boat trips to land in Thailand,” Prawit said. 

Prime Minister Prayut said Thailand needed to provide assistant on a humanitarian basis if any refugees arrived in the Kingdom. “But when the situation returns to normal, we have to send them back home,” he said. 
At least 18,500 Muslim Rohingya have fled to the border with Bangladesh since militants of the Araka Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA) equipped with home explosive devices, machetes and few small arms attacked 30 security outposts in Maungdaw, Buthidaung and Rathedaung township in Rakhine since last Friday. 
A heavy handed operation by the Tatmadaw – the Myanmar military – left more than 100 people, including a dozen security officials, dead. “General Min Aung Hliang told me that the Myanmar army also lost in the battle,” Prawit told reporters.

There has been communal conflict in Rakhine state since 2012 when anti-Muslim sentiment fanned out in the country. Violence has killed hundreds of people and displaced more than 100,000 Rohingya since then. Many of them have taken the dangerous journey from the state and border areas with Bangladesh across the Indian Ocean to Southeast Asia, including Thailand.
Muslim Rohingya receive poor treatment from the predominantly Buddhist Myanmar authorities, who call them Bengalis and deny them citizenship. Former United Nations chief Kofi Annan led an Advisory Commission that released its final report last Wednesday, recommending measures to address Rohingya grievances, including giving them citizenship rights. 
Prayut said Myanmar needed some more time to fix up the complex problem in Rakhine. “We don’t intervene in their domestic affairs. [I understand that] Myanmar authorities do support and develop Rakhine state,” he said.
During the meeting, Min Aung Hlaing told Prayut that it would take time solve the problem in Rakhine state, as the solution must be based on trust and a confidence- building process, according to a Thai government assistant spokesperson, Athisit Chaiyanuwat.
The Myanmar commander in chief also thanked the Thai authorities for providing good care to migrants workers from Myanmar, and said that authorities in Myanmar were ready to cooperate with Thailand for mutual benefit, Athisit said.
Min Aung Hlaing was in Thailand for the fifth meeting of the Thailand-Myanmar High Level Committee, which was held in Northeastern Khon Kaen province on Tuesday. Myanmar and Thai armed forces are cementing trust and friendly relations between the two countries and the two armed forces, he said during the opening of the meeting. 
As the meeting is of importance for property and security issues of the people of two countries, he said “it would bring peace and stability to the border region between the two countries and good benefit to the residents from the border region”.