The White House on Friday called for U.N. envoy Ibrahim Gambari to go directly to Myanmar for new talks instead of first visiting other Asian nations as planned. “Given the continuing abuses of the junta in Burma, we urge U.N. special advisor Gambari to return to Burma as soon as possible,” said Tony Fratto, a White House spokesman. The United States refers to Myanmar by its previous name, Burma. “We would like to see advisor Gambari visit Burma before he visits other regional capitals,” said Fratto, who was accompanying President George W. Bush on a trip to Miami, Florida. The U.N. envoy should “meet with government officials, as well as [opposition leader] Aung San Suu Kyi, so that Burma can move toward a peaceful transition to democracy,” Fratto told reporters. Gambari met junta leaders and detained opposition leader Suu Kyi in a first mission to Myanmar at the beginning of the month after the military government brutally suppressed mass rallies, killing at least 13 people. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced Thursday he is sending Gambari back to the region this weekend to prepare for a return visit to Yangon amid international concern over the political situation in the isolated Southeast Asian country. Gambari first is scheduled to visit Thailand and then head to Malaysia, Indonesia, India, China, and Japan before hoping to return to Myanmar.
