[Myanmar] Burma’S President To Visit White House On Monday

[News_Editor]

US President Barack Obama sits alongside Burmese President Thein Sein in a US-Asean meeting in Bali, Indonesia, on Nov. 18, 2011. (Photo: Reuters)

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama is set to welcome Burma President Thein Sein to the White House on Monday.

It will be the first visit by a Burma head of state in nearly 47 years and a sign of warming ties between the countries.

Last November, Obama became the first sitting US president to visit the country. The trip was a step in administration efforts to end Burma’s decades of diplomatic isolation and reward its shift from authoritarian rule.

White House press secretary Jay Carney says Obama looks forward to discussing the country’s democratic transition, communal and ethnic tensions and providing economic opportunity for Burma’s people.

An aide to Thein Sein said a cyclone due to hit western Burma on Friday could affect his decision to travel.

Source: Irrawaddy.org