Asia-Pacific News

Russia, EU: More study needed on Myanmar's alleged nuclear activity

Jul 23, 2010, 10:28 GMT

Hanoi - More study is needed into allegations that Myanmar is developing nuclear weapons, diplomats from Russia and the European Union said Friday in Hanoi.

'We don't have any firm information, and on issues like this, you need to rely on experts' conclusions,' Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Friday of rumors that Myanmar, or Burma, is developing nuclear weapons.

Lavrov was speaking on the sidelines of the Association of South-East Asian Nations' Regional Forum (ARF) in the Vietnamese capital Hanoi.

The European Commission has taken note of a June documentary by Burmese journalists alleging that Myanmar is developing nuclear weapons, said Seamus Gillespie, a European Commission official responsible for South-East Asian affairs.

'We're looking into that, and when the matter is clarified, we'll make up our minds,' Gillespie said Friday.

At a press briefing Thursday in Hanoi, US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said North Korea had recently delivered 'military material and equipment' to Myanmar, and that Pyongyang may be helping the country to develop nuclear weapons.

On Tuesday, ASEAN Secretary General Surin Pitsuwan told reporters in Hanoi that there was no consensus among member nations about Myanmar's nuclear activities.

ASEAN members are Brunei, Myanmar, Indonesia, Cambodia, Laos, the Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.