New Delhi - Despite the withdrawal of warships from the disputed waters in the Bay of Bengal, both Burma and Bangladesh have beefed up security along its land border, as talks between the two countries to ease tension are yet to yield fruit, sources said. Troop build up on the border by both sides is in evidence.
With South Korean company Daewoo moving out of the disputed territorial waters, where it had been test drilling, Bangladesh withdrew its warships from the region, a Bangladesh naval official told Mizzima.
In a reciprocal gesture Burma also called off two of its naval vessels that were despatched to keep an eye on Daewoo rigs.
"Since both sides are trying to resolve the problem through diplomatic channels, the warships from both sides were withdrawn from the disputed waters," the official, who is based at the Chittagong Naval port of Bangladesh, told Mizzima over telephone.
However, with the talks inconclusive, the two countries have stepped-up security along its land boundary, according to an Editor of the Dhaka based The Daily Star online news service.
"Tension exists… troops are deployed on the land border and the situation is one of aggression," the editor told Mizzima.
Tension between the two countries were triggered off last week, when Burma sent two of its warships to escort and support Daewoo in its work at the AD-7 block in the Bay of Bengal. Bangladesh protested immediately saying the AD-7 falls within its maritime boundary and demanded that all gas exploration activities by Burma be halted.
Bangladesh also sent its foreign secretary to Burma to talk with the military generals in a bid to resolve the issue diplomatically. However, Burma rejected Bangladesh's claim and said the area in which Daewoo and its naval ships had been deployed were in its territorial waters.
Bangladesh's Foreign Adviser Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury and Burmese Foreign Minister Nyan Win also took time off to meet on the sidelines of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Corporation (BIMSTEC) meeting held in New Delhi between November 11 and 13.
Though the talks were described as 'cordial' the two ministers failed to come to an agreement. But both agreed to continue high-level talks on the issue and agreed to resolve it diplomatically.
The tension between the two countries eased somewhat when on November 8, Daewoo removed its rigs from the AD-7 block.
D.S. Kim, an official from Daewoo International Corporation office in Rangoon, told Mizzima that Daewoo on November 8, pulled out of the AD-7, saying it had completed the test drilling at the site and are moving on to another site.
"We have already moved to another site A-3 and have finished drilling in there [AD-7]," Kim said.
