Myanmar president to visit Philippines

YANGON (Xinhua) - Myanmar President U Thein Sein will pay a state visit to the Philippines soon, an official announcement said today without specifying the date of his visit.

U Thein Sein's three-day visit to the Philippines, at the invitation of his Philippino counterpart Beniano Aquino, will be his first to the Southeast Asian nation since his assumption to office in March 2011.

The two leaders will meet to discuss "issues of mutual concern," particularly trade and investment, agriculture, energy, cultural exchanges, and information cooperation, sources said.

The two leaders are also expected to touch on regional issues, including Myanmar's chairmanship of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in 2014.

The two leaders once had their first bilateral meeting in Nay Pyi Taw in June when Aquino attended the World Economic Forum on East Asia hosted by Myanmar.

In another development, Myanmar armed forces airlifted relief supplies to the Philippines hit by recent Typhoon Haiyan.