Bush steps up sanctions on Burma

President George W Bush has stepped up US sanctions against the Burmese junta, attacking the regime's policies of "vicious persecution".

Mr Bush also piled pressure on regional superpowers China and India to "review their own laws and policies" on Burma.

Imposing the second US sanctions package in less than a month, Mr Bush instructed the US Commerce Department to tighten export controls on Burma and said he would also increase the list of Burmese leaders facing financial and travel sanctions.

The US president said: "Burma's rulers continue to defy the world's just demands to stop their vicious persecution. They continue to reject the clear will of the Burmese people."

His move followed weeks of stalled efforts to persuade the regime to ease the repression of democratic protesters and open up dialogue with detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

Burma's generals have kept an iron grip on the country since soldiers crushed street protests that began in late September, led by Buddhist monks.

Mr Bush added that "in light of the ongoing atrocities by these men and their associates" he had designated 11 more leaders under existing sanctions and had issued an executive order naming 12 new "individuals and entities" to be covered by US measures.

Earlier this week, he voiced impatience with the international response to the Burma crackdown and threatened further sanctions.

European Union foreign ministers agreed on Monday to strengthen sanctions against Burma's junta and warned they could ban all new investment.

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