Sec. Clinton to make historic Burma visit
Myanmar democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi visits an exhibition of documentary photos during the Conference on Green Economy and Green Growth at Myanmar Banks Association Hall in Yangon, Myanmar, Friday, Nov. 4, 2011. (AP Photo) (CBS News) Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will travel to Burma next month, the first such visit by a high-ranking U.S. official in more than 50 years, senior administration officials tell CBS News.
Burma (also known as Myanmar) has been ruled by a military junta since 1962, but has been inching closer to democratic reforms in the last year with elections, even hinting at taking steps toward releasing its many thousands of political prisoners.
Sen. John McCain made a high-profile visit there earlier this year, but few American officials have engaged the military regime during its rule.
CBS News correspondent Norah O'Donnell reports that President Obama called chief opposition figure and Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi aboard Air Force One Thursday night to confirm new engagement by the U.S. to help bring reforms to Burma.
Sec. Clinton "will be the first American Secretary of State to travel to the country in over half a century, and she will explore whether the United States can empower a positive transformation in Burma," the president will say in remarks later Friday in Bali.
The move is the most dramatic sign of a changing relationship between the United States and Myanmar, also known as Burma.
Burma (also known as Myanmar) has been ruled by a military junta since 1962, but has been inching closer to democratic reforms in the last year with elections, even hinting at taking steps toward releasing its many thousands of political prisoners.
Sen. John McCain made a high-profile visit there earlier this year, but few American officials have engaged the military regime during its rule.
CBS News correspondent Norah O'Donnell reports that President Obama called chief opposition figure and Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi aboard Air Force One Thursday night to confirm new engagement by the U.S. to help bring reforms to Burma.
Sec. Clinton "will be the first American Secretary of State to travel to the country in over half a century, and she will explore whether the United States can empower a positive transformation in Burma," the president will say in remarks later Friday in Bali.
The move is the most dramatic sign of a changing relationship between the United States and Myanmar, also known as Burma.
