Ban to Visit Burma; Nambiar Named as Envoy

By LALIT K JHA / THE IRRAWADDY

Ban Ki-moon, center, Secretary General of United Nations shakes hands with Demetris Christofias, left, President of Cyprus and Dervis Eroglu, right, Turkish Cypriot leader after a meeting the three had at the UN Headquarters on Jan. 25, 2012. (Photo: AP)

United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said on Wednesday that he is planning to make a trip to Burma in the near future and announced that his chief of staff, Vijay Nambiar, will soon transition to become his full-time special envoy to the country.

“I am planning to visit in the near future Myanmar [Burma] to have further discussions with the Myanmar authorities,” Ban told reporters at the UN headquarters in New York.

Ban said the UN has been playing a very key role in furthering the democratization process of Burma.

“I am very pleased and encouraged by what the current Myanmar authorities led by President Thein Sein [have been doing], including the releasing of political prisoners,” he said.

Responding to questions from reporters, Ban said he has already visited Burma twice and that there have been numerous other visits made by top UN officials, including his special envoy.

“Those roles I believe were laying foundations for other international partners to engage. I have been chairing this Group of Friends on Myanmar many times during the last five years on the basis that I could strengthen the international community’s engagement and support for the democratization process in Myanmar,” he said.

“Of course, this is the result of consolidated engagement of all the partners. But I am proud to tell you that whether it has been quiet diplomacy or public diplomacy, I think we have been employing those two approaches all the time, continuously with patience,” Ban said.

The secretary general added that he has been engaging in direct talks with the Burmese leaders “all the time,” and that his approach has yielded results.

Ban also announced that he will make his chief of staff, Vijay Nambiar, his full-time special representatives on Burma, after serving in the role on a part-time basis.

Meanwhile in Washington, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton met the new Indian ambassador to the US, Nirupama Rao, with whom she discussed Burma among other issues.

“Secretary Clinton and Ambassador Rao also exchanged perspectives on regional issues of mutual interest including the situation in Afghanistan, and recent developments with regard to Iran and Myanmar,” said Indian embassy spokesman Virander Paul.

“They talked about Burma,” the State Department spokesperson, Victoria Nuland, told reporters after the Clinton-Rao meeting.

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