So far, hundreds of people have been killed and more than 140,000 have fled their homes, the vast majority of them Muslims.
Thein Sein, who has been praised for making moves to transition from half a century of military rule, has also been criticized for failing to contain the unrest and protect the country's embattled Muslim minority.
The latest flare-up began in the coastal town of Thandwe on Saturday after a Buddhist taxi driver told police he had been verbally abused by a Muslim small business owner while trying to park in front of his shop, according to a state government spokesman.
Police took the Muslim man in for questioning. But when he was released soon afterward, people became angry and started throwing stones at his home.
