Donors press Myanmar for access

YANGON, Myanmar — Delegates from 52 donor nations, meeting Sunday in Myanmar, pressed its government to make good on a promise to give foreign-aid workers free access to millions of isolated cyclone survivors.

Leading the one-day meeting, the U.N. secretary-general, Ban Ki-moon, said the government was "moving fast in the right direction" and he was confident Myanmar would honor the pledge, made to him Friday by the leader of its military junta, Senior Gen. Than Shwe.

Donor nations said they were ready to provide more than $100 million to help Myanmar recover from the cyclone but warned the ruling junta they will not fully open their wallets until they could reach the hardest-hit areas.

Washington's representative, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Scot Marciel, said the United States was prepared to offer much more than the $20.5 million already donated, but not until international-disaster experts were allowed to thoroughly assess affected areas.

But Myanmar's leaders continued to take a guarded tone, fearing a large influx of foreigners could lead to political interference in their internal affairs.

Myanmar's prime minister, Lt. Gen. Thein Sein, said international aid "with no strings attached" was welcome.

But he hedged on the sensitive issue of direct access, saying only civilian vessels could take part in the aid operation, and they would have to go through Yangon.

"Relief supplies can be transported by land, air or sea," he said. "But if relief supplies have to be transported by water, civilian vessels can come in through Yangon port."

That seemed to nix plans for U.S., British and French warships loaded with humanitarian supplies to join in the relief operation. The ships have been off Myanmar's coast for more than a week.

France said Sunday it would unload the 1,000 tons of aid on its ship, the Mistral, in Phuket, Thailand. The aid, which amounts to 30 planeloads of supplies, then would be taken to Myanmar by the World Food Program and distributed by nongovernmental organizations.

UNICEF said there were signs its foreign workers would be allowed to travel to the hard-hit countryside as early as today.

Like some other relief agencies, including the Red Cross, Save the Children and Federal Way-based World Vision, UNICEF has been able to deploy local staff members in the affected areas and to deliver supplies — mostly those already stockpiled in the country.

But the groups say that foreign experts would bring crucial knowledge and experience to a huge and complex task.

Cyclone Nargis, which struck May 3, left at least 134,000 people dead or missing. Three weeks later, only 23 percent of the 2 million living in the hardest-hit areas had been reached by aid, the United Nations has said.