Top US official to visit Vietnam, Cambodia, Burma

A top US official will be travelling to Burma next week where he will be joining a US business delegation, the US State Department announced here Monday evening. The Department said that Under Secretary of State for Economic Growth, Energy, and the Environment Robert Hormats will travel to Hanoi, Vietnam from July 9-11, where he will join US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton "to meet with government and business leaders and participate in events arranged by the US-ASEAN Business Council." Hormats will then travel to Siem Reap, Cambodia from July 12-13 where he will participate in "Commitment to Connectivity (C2C): The US-ASEAN Business Forum," the first forum of its kind, an event which will include government and private sector participants from the United States and ASEAN member countries, according to the statement. It added that the US official will finally travel to Naypyitaw and Rangoon, Burma from July 14-15 "to support Burma's reform process by promoting economic and business engagement with government officials and joining a US business delegation organized by the US-ASEAN Business Council." The statement indicated that in Burma, Hormats "will be joined by Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade Francisco Sanchez and senior officials from the Department of State."