YANGON: Myanmar's president will visit China next week, an official said, in his first bilateral trip to a foreign power since taking the helm of the country's new nominally civilian government.
Thein Sein will travel to Myanmar's powerful northern neighbour from May 26 to 29, but it is not yet known which senior Chinese figures he will meet.
"The president wanted to visit China first because it is important both for diplomatic and economic ties," a Myanmar government official told AFP, adding that the two countries had been planning a meeting since Thein Sein's inauguration earlier this year.
"He will go to other countries later," he added.
The details of the president's China visit were revealed soon after US envoy Joseph Yun held held talks with Myanmar's foreign minister on Wednesday.
Yun, the deputy US assistant secretary for East Asia and Pacific affairs, is expected to meet Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi on Thursday as part of a four-day trip to the country, but was not likely to see Thein Sein.
Myanmar's president, a former general and junta prime minister, retired from the army to contest an election last November that was marred by claims of cheating and the exclusion of democracy champion Suu Kyi.
His first foray into foreign diplomacy was a visit to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit in Indonesia earlier this month.
This attracted controversy after Myanmar announced it wanted to chair the group in 2014 despite allegations of ongoing human rights abuses and doubts over democratic reforms.
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