23.10.2012, 20:21
Burma Willing to Cut Military Ties with N.Korea
Burma is willing to sever its military ties with North Korea, the U.S. Special Representative for North Korea Policy Glyn Davies said Monday.
Reuters reported that Davies, who is visiting Beijing, told reporters, "I think that Burma's on the right path, that they have made a strategic decision to fundamentally alter their relationship with [North Korea] and to ultimately end these relationships with North Korea."
But he added it is "a work in process. It was a long relationship that the two countries had, and so it does take some time to work through it."
Thein Sein, who became the country's first quasi-democratically elected president in March last year, has introduced a dizzying array of reforms in Burma, releasing a number of political prisoners, and is tying to improve diplomatic relations with the West.
After President Lee Myung-bak's visit to Burma in May, Rangoon reportedly pledged to halt its weapons trade with North Korea. Thein Sein also told U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton when she visited Burma in December last year that his government will follow the UN resolution that bans arms dealings with the North.
Since Clinton's visit last year, the U.S. has repeatedly asked Burma to end its relations with North Korea.
After the Rangoon bombing in 1983 by North Korean agents targeting then-South Korean president Chun Doo-hwan, Burma cut official diplomatic ties with North Korea, but it restored them in 2007. But it is widely known that the North sold missile technology and arms to Burma even before 2007.
( http://english.chosun.com/site/data/html...01325.html )
Myanmar on "right path" over DPRK military ties
Myanmar reforms continue as the country takes steps to sever military ties with North Korea.
The US has said Myanmar (also known as Burma) is on the "right path" over separating its military ties with North Korea on Monday, but cautioned the relationship between the two nations would take time to change.
"I think that Burma's on the right path," said US Special Representative for North Korea Policy Glyn Davies to a group of reporters in Beijing. "They have made a strategic decision to fundamentally alter their relationship with the DPRK and to ultimately end these relationships with North Korea."
Davies added, "But it's a work in process. It was a long relationship that the two countries had and so it does take some time to work through it."
Back in May, Myanmar vowed to stop buying weapons from North Korea.
The New York Times reported President Thein Sein had said his country decided not to pursue, "the development of nuclear weapons and vowed to honor a UN Security Council resolution that bans countries from engaging in activities that could assist North Korea’s nuclear and long-range missile programs."
Last year, after decades of military rule, Myanmar initiated a number of reforms. Much remains to be done and serious restrictions still exist, but Glyn Davies' announcement suggests the nation is continuing to move in the right direction.
( http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/...itary-ties )
Burma is willing to sever its military ties with North Korea, the U.S. Special Representative for North Korea Policy Glyn Davies said Monday.
Reuters reported that Davies, who is visiting Beijing, told reporters, "I think that Burma's on the right path, that they have made a strategic decision to fundamentally alter their relationship with [North Korea] and to ultimately end these relationships with North Korea."
But he added it is "a work in process. It was a long relationship that the two countries had, and so it does take some time to work through it."
Thein Sein, who became the country's first quasi-democratically elected president in March last year, has introduced a dizzying array of reforms in Burma, releasing a number of political prisoners, and is tying to improve diplomatic relations with the West.
After President Lee Myung-bak's visit to Burma in May, Rangoon reportedly pledged to halt its weapons trade with North Korea. Thein Sein also told U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton when she visited Burma in December last year that his government will follow the UN resolution that bans arms dealings with the North.
Since Clinton's visit last year, the U.S. has repeatedly asked Burma to end its relations with North Korea.
After the Rangoon bombing in 1983 by North Korean agents targeting then-South Korean president Chun Doo-hwan, Burma cut official diplomatic ties with North Korea, but it restored them in 2007. But it is widely known that the North sold missile technology and arms to Burma even before 2007.
( http://english.chosun.com/site/data/html...01325.html )
Myanmar on "right path" over DPRK military ties
Myanmar reforms continue as the country takes steps to sever military ties with North Korea.
The US has said Myanmar (also known as Burma) is on the "right path" over separating its military ties with North Korea on Monday, but cautioned the relationship between the two nations would take time to change.
"I think that Burma's on the right path," said US Special Representative for North Korea Policy Glyn Davies to a group of reporters in Beijing. "They have made a strategic decision to fundamentally alter their relationship with the DPRK and to ultimately end these relationships with North Korea."
Davies added, "But it's a work in process. It was a long relationship that the two countries had and so it does take some time to work through it."
Back in May, Myanmar vowed to stop buying weapons from North Korea.
The New York Times reported President Thein Sein had said his country decided not to pursue, "the development of nuclear weapons and vowed to honor a UN Security Council resolution that bans countries from engaging in activities that could assist North Korea’s nuclear and long-range missile programs."
Last year, after decades of military rule, Myanmar initiated a number of reforms. Much remains to be done and serious restrictions still exist, but Glyn Davies' announcement suggests the nation is continuing to move in the right direction.
( http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/...itary-ties )