New Delhi/IBNS: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar Tuesday said the work on the India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral (IMTT) Highway has been stopped owing to the internal strife in Myanmar.

The completion of the highway is considered to be a game changer in India's neighbourhood policy in engaging with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

Jaishankar said India's 'Neighbourhood First' policy has made significant progress in Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, and Myanmar.

He cited India's role in shipping vaccines to neighbouring nations during the Covid-19 pandemic.

"There has been steady growth and deepening of ties between New Delhi and ASEAN, which should be further leveraged by all concerned," Jaishankar said at a session on 'Act East, Act Fast and Act First' at the Advantage Assam Summit in Guwahati.

"The situation in Myanmar has paused the IMTT Highway project... We cannot allow this [Myanmar unrest] to block something so momentous. Practical solutions will have to be found to ensure the advancement of this initiative," he said.

Till July 2023, at least 70 percent of construction work on the IMTT highway had been completed.

The 1,400-km-long highway would link India with Southeast Asia by land.

On completion,  the highway will give a boost to trade, business, health, education and tourism ties among the three countries.