WASHINGTON — Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and Burmese democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi have discussed the recent easing of U.S. sanctions and the need to protect against Burma’s backsliding on reforms, the State Department said Monday.
The U.S. announced Friday that it was suspending a ban on American investment and the export of financial services to Burma.
It was the Obama administration’s most significant step yet to reward Burma for its shift from five decades of authoritarian rule, although some rights groups criticized the move as premature.
Clinton called Suu Kyi on Sunday night, and they agreed Burma’s important progress of the past several months remains fragile. Clinton said the U.S. was keeping its sanctions’ authorities in place as an insurance policy, according to a department statement.
They talked about the need for specific steps to promote responsible, transparent investment and to empower reformers and target abusers, the statement said.
Suu Kyi, a Nobel peace laureate and Burma’s most popular politician, has cautiously endorsed the European Union’s suspension of economic sanctions and similar steps taken by the U.S. in recognition of the election of her and dozens of her party members to parliament in April.
Front Section, Pages 3 on 05/22/2012