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| Aung San Suu Kyi [File Photo] |
Washington: Myanmar’s opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi on Tuesday met Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton on the first day of her landmark 17-days visit to United States.
It was her first visit to the country after being released from house arrest in 2010.
Earlier on Tuesday, the Nobel Peace laureate arrived in Washington and she is scheduled to meet UN General Secretary Ban Ki-moon in the New York later in the week where she is supposed to deliver remarks as part of a discussion about Myanmar's democratic transition and challenges facing the country's future.
Suu Kyi will be presented With Congress’s most prestigious award-the Congressional Gold Medal- during her visits that comes as the Obama administration considers easing remaining sanctions on Myanmar.
Other stops on her visit include the states of California, New York and Indiana. Fort Wayne, Indiana is home to one of the country's largest Burmese-American communities.
Aung San Suu Kyi's visit coincides with next week's visit by Myanmar’s President Thein Sein, who will address the United Nations General Assembly.
President Obama is considering relaxing some of the tough sanctions imposed on Myanmar because of the former military government's poor human rights record.
Conditions have improved since the nominally civilian government came to power last year, including freedom for hundreds of political prisoners. Aung San Suu Kyi, who spent nearly 20 years under house arrest, is now a member of the Burmese parliament.