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Singapore disappointed by Mynamar's move on UN envoy

03 Nov 2007 05:03:24 GMT
Source: Reuters

SINGAPORE, Nov 3 (Reuters) - Singapore said on Saturday that it was deeply disappointed by Myanmar's move to expel the United Nations's top resident diplomat, ahead of a visit by UN special envoy Ibrahim Gambari.

Singapore is currently the chair of the 10-member Association of South East Asian Nations, one of the few international groups to admit Myanmar as a member. The city-state is also one of the biggest investors in the former Burma.

"This announcement has come at a most inopportune time, just before the arrival of UNSG Special Advisor Ibrahim Gambari," the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.

"It also sends an inconsistent message about Myanmar's willingness to continue engaging the UN in improving its domestic political and socio-economic situation."

U.N. officials said on Friday that Charles Petrie had been summoned to Myanmar's new capital, Naypyitaw, for an official dressing down for a statement highlighting the country's deepening economic crisis.

After the meeting, Petrie and his colleagues were given a letter saying the military government would not be renewing his credentials, which expire "pretty much now," a Yangon-based diplomat said.

Petrie had been laying the groundwork for a second visit on Saturday of special envoy Ibrahim Gambari since September's bloody crackdown on monk-led pro-democracy protests.

In New York, the United Nations said Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon was disappointed with the junta's move.

Gambari's mission aims to persuade the military junta to enter serious talks about political reform with detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who won a 1990 election landslide but was denied power by the army.

Singapore has in the past rejected calls for sanctions on Myanmar saying that it would make reconciliation more difficult in the country.

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Last updated:Sat Nov 3 05:03:52 2007