Yangon, June 2 (AFP) US Senator John McCain was expected to meet Myanmar's democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi today during a visit for talks with the new army-backed government and opposition.
The senior Republican's visit comes as President Barack Obama, who beat McCain in the 2008 White House race, pursues greater engagement with the military-dominated nation.
McCain, the ranking Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee, yesterday met with Vice President Tin Aung Myint Oo and Foreign Minister Wunna Maung Lwin in the capital Naypyidaw, according to state media.
They "exchanged views on promotion of bilateral ties and cooperation between the two countries," the New Light of Myanmar reported.
McCain was today expected to hold talks in Yangon with Suu Kyi, who was released from house arrest in November shortly after the junta held the first election in 20 years.