EU to show, but ASEM may be 'testy'

EU to show, but ASEM may be 'testy'

Michael Thurston, Agence France-Presse, Valkenburg, Netherlands

The European Union will after all attend a summit with key Asian
states next month after resolving a row over military-ruled
Myanmar, while insisting it stands firm against Yangon.

But signs emerged almost immediately that the Oct. 8-9 summit
in Hanoi could see some testy talks, with Thailand notably
questioning the EU's right to "dictate" the terms under which the
Europeans will attend.

EU foreign ministers, who hammered out a compromise at weekend
talks in the Netherlands, say they do not want to see Myanmar's
top leaders at the Oct. 8-9 Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) in the
Vietnamese capital.

And they are threatening to tighten even further sanctions
already in place against Myanmar unless Yangon makes progress on
key demands, including the release of democracy leader and Nobel
peace prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi.

"The summit will provide us with an opportunity to confront
Burma with our concerns on human rights and the need for
democratic reforms," said Dutch Foreign Minister Bernard Bot,
whose country holds the EU presidency.

The EU refusal to let Myanmar attend the summit -- grouping
the EU and seven members of the Association of Southeast Asian
Nations (ASEAN) plus China, Japan and South Korea -- had
threatened to scotch the meeting altogether.

In particular the EU laments the continued house arrest of
Aung San Suu Kyi, and Myanmar's refusal to allow her National
League for Democracy unfettered participation in a national
political convention.

Under the terms of an accord agreed late on Friday, the EU
said it will go to Hanoi but insisted: "We expect the level of
Burmese participation to be lower than at the level of head of
state or government."

Key ASEAN power Thailand immediately welcomed the EU accord,
with Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra saying the Myanmar issue
was now "unlikely" to affect the ASEM summit.

But a spokesman for Thailand's foreign ministry also insisted
that Yangon alone should decide who it sends to the Hanoi
meeting.

"As for participation, it is up to each country to decide,"
spokesman Sihasak Phuangketkeow told AFP. "It is not fair to
dictate any terms to the other side."

This appeared to run counter to the understanding of EU
diplomats, who said former Dutch foreign minister Hans van den
Broek had secured assurances that Myanmar would not be
represented at top level, during recent talks in the region.

"It is understood they are willing to go along with that," he
said.

The EU already has a package of sanctions in place against
Yangon, including a visa ban and a freeze on Burmese assets in
Europe. The threatened new measures would include extending the
visa ban, banning funding for Burmese state enterprises and
voting against loans to Myanmar from international bodies.

"If at the ASEM summit where the 25 will be represented there
is no forward movement in the fulfillment of these conditions
then we will apply the sharpened measures," said Bot.

The ministers also agreed to expand assistance to the Burmese
people, notably in the areas of health and education. The
European Commission also provides 10 million euros per year in
assistance.

Even as the EU ministers met, Burmese authorities accused
their chief European critic Britain of a negative approach
towards the row.

"It is unfortunate that London continues to ignore not only
Yangon's and ASEAN's call but its own European partners to
examine the effectiveness of imposing self-defeating policies,"
the military junta said in a statement.