China lukewarm on Burma sanctions
China disagrees with US claim that sanctions should be imposed on Burma's military junta
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Saturday, 06, Oct 2007 12:07
China has knocked back suggestions from the US that sanctions should be imposed on Burma after last week's violent repression of peaceful protests.
A statement drafted in the UN by America, Britain and France demands that the country's military junta open discussions with opposition leaders and release political prisoners.
If China and Russia, the other two permanent members of the UN security council, agree with the strongly-worded document then Burma's army rulers would likely fold under international pressure, especially since Beijing is the closest it has to an ally.
But China remains opposed to sanctions, agreeing with Burma's ambassador to the UN that the pro-democracy marches seen at the end of September were an internal matter and not a threat to international security.
"Despite the recent tragic events, the situation in [Burma] is not, and I repeat not, a threat to either regional or international peace and security. No security council action is warranted," Kyaw Tint Swe said in New York yesterday.
Earlier, the UN's special envoy to Burma warned the country's military rulers of "serious international repercussions" over their reaction to last week's protests.
State television in Burma admitted that ten people had been killed as security forces drove demonstrators from the streets of Yangon, but observers and foreign journalists, banned from entering Burma, say the death-toll could be much higher.
Hundreds of Buddhist monks have also been detained after monasteries throughout the country were subject to overnight raids.
It was the taking to the streets by the revered monks that encouraged hundreds of thousands of civilians to do the same in Yangon, the former capital that remains Burma's largest city.
During his trip to Burma, UN envoy Ibrahim Gambari, Nigeria's former foreign minister, was granted an audience with senior junta figure General Than Shwe, while he also met twice with Nobel prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi.
He said there was now an "hour of historic opportunity" for the two parties to meet and end the "high level of mistrust" between them.
Opposition leader Ms Suu Kyi has been under house arrest for 12 out of the last 18 years.
Last night state television in Burma took the rare step of broadcasting footage of the 62-year-old, suggesting that Gen Shwe's promise to meet with the politician was likely to be fulfilled.
Events are taking place worldwide, including in London's Trafalgar Square, today demanding the end of military rule in Burma.