Myanmar's President Htin Kyaw waves just before taking off from capital Naypyitaw, Myanmar, Friday, May 6, 2016. Myanmar' s de facto leader Suu Kyi and President Htin Kyaw left Myanmar on a one-day official visit to Laos, their first overseas tour since taking over power in March 2016. (AP Photo/Aung Shine Oo)
May 06, 2016 - 6:20 AM
YANGON, Myanmar - Aung San Suu Kyi, Myanmar's de facto leader and foreign minister, visited neighbouring Laos on Friday in her first official trip abroad.
Myanmar and Laotian state media reported that Suu Kyi accompanied Myanmar President Htin Kyaw on the visit, which came at the invitation of the president of Laos, Bounnhang Vorachit.
Htin Kyaw was the first head of state to be hosted by Bounnhang, who officially assumed his post just three weeks ago.
The Laotian state news agency KPL said the purpose of the visit was to strengthen relations and co-operation between the countries.
It said both sides also exchanged points of view on regional and international issues of common interest, and discussed restarting direct flights between tourist and commercial destinations in both countries.
Suu Kyi, who took office on March 30, already held a meeting with a representative of Myanmar's most important neighbour, when Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi visited the Myanmar capital Naypyitaw in early April.
Suu Kyi holds the post of state counsellor, which was specially created for her, and in that position is the country's real leader. The military-imposed constitution barred her from becoming president, so as leader of her National League for Democracy party she arranged for her close associate Htin Kyaw to become president but defer to her as the decision-maker.
She seems likely to expand her power, as Htin Kyaw on Thursday proposed to Parliament that a Ministry for State Counsellor be created.
According to the state-controlled Global New Light of Myanmar newspaper, he explained that his proposal "is intended to speed up the government's efforts at national reconciliation, internal peace, national development and the rule of law."
News from © The Associated Press, 2016