US invited to send observers to Burma's elections

Washington - The Burmese government has invited the United States to send observers for the country's April 1 parliamentary by-election, the State Department said Wednesday.

The nation / Bangkok

The invitation was for two election representatives plus three journalists to receive permission to observe on election day, State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said.

The Association of South-East Asian Nations said Tuesday that it had been invited to send a delegation of about 25 monitors for the vote.

Nuland called the invitation a "welcome" move by the Burmese government.

"This is a good first step. Burma hasn’t allowed international observation before," she said. "But it does fall short of international complete transparency on an election, and we hope they’ll continue to keep the system open and open it further."

The vote is being held to fill 48 vacant Parliament seats.//DPA