UK's Cameron to visit Myanmar as EU mulls sanctions lift

UK's Cameron to visit Myanmar as EU mulls sanctions lift

Press quote (Reuters)
10 April 2012

Tomas Valasek of the CER think-tank in London, said there was some "one-upmanship" among EU countries when it came to Myanmar. "Assuming Myanmar continues to develop, everybody in Europe wants to be seen as the one that broke the ice with the country," he said. "Countries that were among the first to reach out could stand to have better trade relations with Myanmar," he said.

Valasek said it was a "tricky call" whether it was beneficial for Cameron to visit Myanmar now. "Obviously you want to send some signals that the relationship is going to improve," he said. But, on the other hand, "you don't want to put all your eggs in one basket and give (Myanmar) all of the benefits of full cooperation" when reform still has a long way to go, he said.