Manmohan Meets Suu Kyi, Hails India Ties

Yangon: Myanmar's iconic pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi said Tuesday after meeting Prime Minister Manmohan Singh that she was "happy at the prospect of closer ties with India".

Manmohan Singh met Suu Kyi here on the third and final day of his official visit to oil-rich Myanmar with whom a dozen agreements were inked Monday.

"India and Burma have been particularly close over the years," Nobel Laureate Suu Kyi told reporters after their over 45-minute meeting.

"The struggle for India's independence took place at the same time as the struggle for Burma's independence," said a smiling Suu Kyi, who leaves Tuesday night for Thailand on her first overseas trip in nearly a quarter century.

Wearing a purple dress embellished with flowers, the National League for Democracy leader said she was "happy at the prospect of closer ties with India".

"Our democratic goal is on the basis of peace and stability," she said as Manmohan Singh looked on.

She added that she was willing to take up the invitation to deliver the Jawaharlal Nehru memorial lecture in India.

Manmohan Singh said it had been a privilege to have met Suu Kyi, who studied in New Delhi's Lady Sri Ram College before pursuing higher studies in Oxford.

"We in India are very proud of our long standing association with her and members of her family," said the prime minister.