IN AN unprecedented move, Myanmar's military regime is seeking talks with the United States about the country's political future.
It wants 'pragmatic, useful advice on making the transition to a stable democracy', the Yangon government that once scoffed at an offer of a US$1 billion (S$1.75 billion) World Bank loan in return for democratic change declared last Thursday.
But don't bet on the apparent turnaround signifying a change of heart among Yangon's generals.
True, several hundred political prisoners have been freed recently and the regime has opened the doors to Amnesty International, the Red Cross and the International Labour Organisation.
United Nations Special Rapporteur Paulo Pinheiro notes that prison conditions for political prisoners have improved, with fewer cases of beatings and torture.
On the other hand, the junta is still arresting political dissidents and National League for Democracy (NLD) activists, and refusing to start a dialogue to engage pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi and her party.
Which makes it clear why the generals are making peace overtures to Washington: because they hope to ward off new sanctions which the Bush administration plans to impose on the regime.The US declared last week that its patience was running out. 'We, along with the United Kingdom and others, are considering all options, including further sanctions,' warned Mr Lorne Craner, the US Assistant Secretary for the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labour.
Myanmar, in dire economic straits with inflation spiralling upwards at 50 per cent a year, in tandem with a currency falling in value, cannot afford new sanctions.Symptomatic of the crisis was the massive run on its banks last week, which forced the central bank to restrict money transfers and limit withdrawals from private banks to a paltry 200,000 kyat (S$317) a week, bringing business to a standstill.
On top of that, Myanmar's border problems with Thailand remain unresolved, thus hampering bilateral trade and adding to Yangon's economic woes.According to aid agencies, the refugee flow into Thailand worsened last year, and about a million people have been displaced within Myanmar because of the war with ethnic minorities.
The ostracised regime gets little foreign aid, and it is starved of soft loans from international lending agencies.
Although the European Union (EU) lifted its visa embargo and allowed Myanmar to join the Asean-EU ministerial talks in Brussels last month, it wants Asean countries to put more pressure on the junta to undertake political reforms.
In contrast to the junta, Ms Suu Kyi, a Nobel peace laureate, has the support of the West.Last week, the US-based Freedom Forum awarded her the Al Neuharth Free Spirit of the Year Award and US$1 million for her advocacy of democracy.
The Bush administration is insisting on genuine democratic change in Myanmar as a precondition for dropping its sanctions.
The signs point however, to a renewed standoff between her and the generals, as mutual restraints give way to mutual recriminations.
According to foreign diplomats, the regime's grassroots organisation is distributing pamphlets that vilify her and her cause.She, in turn, has called for international sanctions to stay as long as the regime procrastinates in starting a political dialogue with her party.
Given the intransigence on both sides, Yangon's latest call for talks with Washington will be a fruitless exercise.