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Regime Hails Its Cyclone Response

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The Associated Press

Published: June 2, 2008

YANGON, Myanmar - Myanmar's ruling junta, faced with global outrage about its low-key response to last month's deadly cyclone, said Sunday that recovery from the catastrophe will be speedy and extolled the country's leaders for their actions in the crisis.

Criticism of the military junta's response to the storm continued, however, with U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates saying the government has acted with "criminal neglect" in responding to the crisis.

The regime has limited foreign relief workers' numbers and added conditions to their movement, despite agreeing more than a week ago to U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's request that they be allowed into worst affected areas in the Irrawaddy delta.

Speaking on Sunday in Thailand, Gates said Myanmar's reluctance to allow a free flow of foreign assistance and aid workers meant that many more people would die. He was referring particularly to the refusal of the junta to allow U.S., British and French military ships off Myanmar's coast to bring in aid.

Gates told reporters that he will make a decision within "a matter of days" about withdrawing U.S. Navy ships, because "it's becoming pretty clear the regime is not going to let us help."

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