EU says China pressure on Myanmar key

By Lindsay Beck

BEIJING (Reuters) - China's support has been vital to achieving initial steps toward national reconciliation in military-ruled Myanmar, an EU envoy said on Thursday, but added Beijing would not directly pressure the regime towards reform.

China, a major trading partner of Myanmar and one of its only allies, is seen as one of the few voices that could wield influence with the junta, which is under pressure to reform following massive anti-government protests this year.

But Piero Fassino, the European Union's special envoy on Myanmar, also known as Burma, said Chinese officials had told him on a visit to Beijing that they would not directly push for the release of political prisoners or detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

"During my meetings with the Chinese authorities, they made clear that the way ahead regarding the Burmese crisis stands with the Burmese themselves," Fassino told a news conference.

"Of course I believe that it's our duty to encourage Burmese leaders to go along that direction, and in that regard the release of Aung San Suu Kyi and the main political leaders are very positive steps," he said. "But what the Chinese say is that it's up to them to take the final decision."

Earlier this year, pro-democracy protesters led by Buddhist monks staged the country's largest anti-government demonstrations in nearly 20 years.

The official death toll from the junta's resulting crackdown is 31, but some Western diplomats say the figure is much higher.

China was playing a "very important role" in steps toward a resolution to the crisis in Myanmar, Fassino said. These include talks between the junta and United Nations special envoy Ibrahim Gambari, and Myanmar's naming of a go-between with Suu Kyi.