Relief operations are continuing in India and Bangladesh after a cyclone earlier this week killed about 200 people, and left hundreds of thousands homeless.
Cyclone Aila slammed into the coast of Bangladesh and eastern India on Monday, dumping heavy rains that flooded villages and caused deadly mudslides.
Both countries on Wednesday said the military is aiding local relief efforts. Rescue workers are trying to reach those stranded by the flooding and get urgently needed food and other supplies to those who were forced from their homes.
The secretary-general of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Surin Pitsuwan expressed deep condolences to the affected people in both countries. In separate letters to the Indian and Bangladeshi foreign ministers, he said he was confident that "both countries would be able to cope successfully" with the effects of the disaster.