U.S. restores diplomatic relations with Burma

[Lasher]

Source: SFGate

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said Friday that the United States will send an ambassador to Burma for the first time in two decades, restoring full diplomatic relations now that the long-isolated country has released hundreds of political prisoners and made other reforms.

Clinton's announcement that the two countries will exchange ambassadors came on a day of celebration in the streets of Burma after President Thein Sein issued pardons and freed 651 detainees, including some of its most famous political inmates.

President Obama, in a statement, described the pardons as "a substantial step forward for democratic reform."

The U.S. decision follows a landmark visit by Clinton to the repressive country in December as a way to deepen engagement and encourage more openness there, although Washington will be maintaining hard-hitting economic and political sanctions for the time being. As it looks to step up U.S. involvement across the Asia-Pacific region, the Obama administration has shifted from Washington's long-standing policy of isolating Burma's military government because of its poor human rights record.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2012/01/13/MNSS1MP6CQ.DTL

[rpannier]

1. Should have bombed them. None of this weak-kneed appeasement

Sorry about that.
I lost a bet with John Bolton and he got to write my subject line.

K&R for this achievement in diplomacy