Media Note
Office of the Spokesman
Washington, DC
Under Secretary Burns' Travel to Singapore and Australia December 3-6
Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs R. Nicolas Burns will travel to Singapore, Canberra, and Sydney December
3-6.
In Singapore, Under Secretary Burns will conduct bilateral meetings with Singapore officials on both bilateral relations
and on regional developments, as Singapore is the current ASEAN chair and country coordinator for the U.S.-ASEAN
dialogue. The United States values Singapore as a strategic partner, particularly its support and contributions to the
efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Under Secretary Burns will stress the importance of ASEAN states, collectively and individually, supporting the
initiation of a genuine dialogue between the military junta in Burma, the democratic opposition, and ethnic minorities
and the release of Aung San Suu Kyi.
In Australia, Under Secretary Burns will meet with Australian leaders of the new government that came into office after
the recent November 24 elections. He will also participate with his Australian and Japanese counterparts in the next
Senior Officials' session of the Trilateral Strategic Dialogue, held with two of our most important Treaty Allies in the
Asia-Pacific region.
The Trilateral Strategic Dialogue will cover a wide range of global issues, including the situation in East Asia, South
Asia, and the Middle East, and areas of trilateral cooperation, including humanitarian assistance/disaster relief and
counter-terrorism.
2007/1078
Released on December 3, 2007
ENDS