To prepare for the repatriation of  Rohingya Muslim refugees who fled from Rakhine State to Bangladesh before the onset of the rainy season, foreign ministry officials from Myanmar, Bangladesh, and China held a tripartite meeting in Kunming, China.

On Monday (April 17), Bangladesh Foreign Secretary Masud Bin Momen reportedly met with representatives from Myanmar and China in Kunming, China, according to The Daily Star, a major newspaper in Bangladesh.

No public official release regarding the visit of Bangladesh Foreign Secretary Masud Bin Momen to Kunming is available, and the details of the discussion remain unknown.

Based on reports obtained by the Daily Star newspaper, discussions primarily focused on the repatriation of 1,000 Muslim refugees before the onset of the monsoon season.

Once they have assessed the situation in Rakhine state, they will commence the process of receiving refugees.

A delegation of 17 officials from Myanmar arrived in Teknaf, a border town in Cox’s Bazar district, Bangladesh, for a five-day visit in March of this year to review the list of refugees slated for repatriation.

Since 2017, around 750,000 Rohingya refugees were forced to flee from Rakhine State to Bangladesh as a result of Myanmar’s military’s massive ethnic cleansing operation. Despite two attempts by China to repatriate them, not a single refugee has reportedly returned.

According to the Muslim refugees and UN human rights experts , the security situation in Rakhine state remains precarious, and even if they were to return, there is no guarantee that they would be granted citizenship and their land would be returned.

The repatriation of Muslim refugees has been beset by delays due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the military coup in 2021. Currently, a pilot program is underway to attempt their return.

According to Bangladeshi Foreign Ministry officials, Myanmar's Military Council is now willing to accept refugees, and in March of this year, they invited ambassadors from ASEAN countries as well as Bangladesh, India, and China to visit Rakhine State and observe the situation.

The UNHCR has always maintained that unless it can be demonstrated that it is voluntary repatriation, then any attempt to force Rohingya people to return is a clear violation of international law.