President Barack Obama has announced that the United States is prepared to lift economic sanctions on Myanmar, following talks at the White House with the country's de facto leader, Aung San Suu Kyi.
After their meeting Wednesday, both leaders spoke to reporters in the Oval Office. Citing that country's “remarkable social and political transformation,” Obama said, "The United States is now prepared to lift sanctions that we have imposed on Burma for quite some time.”
Earlier, he sent a letter to Congress saying the administration is moving to restore trade benefits to Myanmar that were suspended more than two decades ago because of human rights abuses.
Speaking alongside Obama, Aung San Suu Kyi thanked him personally for being the first U.S. president to visit Myanmar. She also thanked the Congress for putting pressure on Myanmar to restore human rights, but said the time has now come for the U.S. to lift all sanctions, saying, "But unity also needs prosperity, because people, when they have to fight over limited resources, forget that standing together is important."
She pleaded for people to visit and invest in the country, saying, “I expect businessmen to come to our country to make profits.” She said she expects Myanmar's legislature to pass a new investment law she hopes will be very attractive to countries around the world.
Aung San Suu Kyi acknowledged that while Myanmar has made progress in its transition to democracy, there is "so much that has to be done." She cited continuing tensions among its 135 ethnic groups, and said her administration is focused on the situation in Rakhine state, saying "communal strife is not something we can ignore."