Myanmar reforms in India’s interest: US

“Our message in Burma (old name of Myanmar) has been consistently that the regime in Burma has shown no signs of movement except when it has faced significant international pressure,” said Scot Marciel, US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for East Asia and the Pacific.

“India is very important in this as it is a neighbour and most importantly as the world’s largest democracy. The world looks to India ...to contribute to this overall effort. Because we think that Burma moving in the right direction economically, politically, socially and in terms of human health problems and refugee flows is in India’s interest,” he said at the Foreign Press Centre here.

The senior official said the Myanmar issue did not involve just the US and the world community needed to work together to bring reforms in the country.

“We are not asking countries to help us. This is not a US-Burma issue. This is about a regime in Burma treating its people terribly and its policies have a significant impact not only inside Burma but also in the region,” Marciel said.

“We think the international community has a strong interest in Burma in trying to find possible change there. So it is not a matter of going to countries and saying ‘help us’; it is a matter of working with other governments... to see progress in Burma,” Marciel said.