THE first summit will be held in Bangkok this week of grouping established in 1997 to promote economic cooperation among countries in South and Southeast Asia.

The summit of the BIMST-EC grouping will be held on July 31.

It will be preceded by separate meetings of foreign ministers and senior government officials on July 30.

The grouping, originally known as BIST-EC, was launched by Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka and Thailand at a meeting in Bangkok in June 1997.

Myanmar joined in December that year, resulting in the grouping’s name being changed to BIMST-EC.

Bhutan and Nepal were admitted to the grouping at a ministerial meeting in Phuket, Thailand, last February which also included the signing of a framework agreement to establish a free trade area. The Prime Minister, General Khin Nyunt, is expected to attend the summit.