Doubts over Assam Rifles role - Force fails to stop arms smuggling across Myanmar border
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US ready to work with India to provide relief in Myanmar
May 9, 2008: (The Economic Times) Washington: The United States has said that it was prepared to work with countries like India and China to provide humanitarian assistance in cyclone-ravaged Myanmar if Yangon did not allow a direct entry to its military for relief operations.
Responding to a question on
whether the US could work
with the United Nations and countries like India
and China
until the airdrops by its military were okayed by the military junta,
the Defence Secretary Robert Gates sounded positive.
"Well, this is really more the State Department's and the White House's
arena, but my belief would be that if we cannot get in directly, that we would
be prepared to work creatively with others in any way we could to help. And if
that involves using an intermediary, perhaps we would do that," he said
speaking at the Pentagon.
"I think our interest here is totally non-political. It's to try and help
the people of Myanmar.
And I think if we can't do it directly, then we'd be prepared to consider other
means of doing it," he stressed.
Meanwhile, the State Department said that there were no plans to get the United
Nations Security Council involved in the humanitarian issue.
"The UNSC has been used on Myanmar
for political issues and there are no plans by Washington to approach that body in the
current humanitarian crisis," State Department Spokesman Sean McCormack
said.
"Our focus, really is, as well as others, trying to get the diplomacy to
work, to try to get this regime to allow in international assistance. That
really is the focus of our efforts," he added.