David Cameron meets pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi at her lakeside home in Rangoon, Burma, today. Photograph: Stefan Rouseau/PA
I'm going to wrap this blog up now. Nicholas Watt will be filing another story shortly and you'll be able to read that here. Thanks for all your comments.
Here are the key quotes from that press conference with David Cameron and Aung San Suu Kyi:
David Cameron on sanctions
I met with President Thein Sein today, and I think there are prospects for change in Burma, and I think it is right for the rest of the world to respond to those changes. Of course we must respond with caution, with care, we must always be sceptical and questioning, because we want to know those changes are irreversible, but … I think it is right to suspend the sanctions that there are against Burma - to suspend them, not lift them, and obviously not to include the arms embargo - because I do think it is important to send a signal that we want to help see the changes that can bring the growth of freedom, human rights and democracy in your country … [The government] haven't done enough. There's much more that they need to do. And we will keep that pressure on. That is why suspending sanctions, rather than lifting sanctions, is the right answer.
Aung San Suu Kyi on sanctions
I believe President Thein Sein is genuine about democratic reforms and I am very happy that Prime Minister Cameron thinks that the suspension of sanctions is the right way to respond to this. I support the … suspension, rather than the lifting, of sanctions, because this would be an acknowledgement of the role of the president and other reformers. This suspension would have taken place because of the steps taken by the president and other reformers, and it would also make it quite clear to those who are against reform that should they try to obstruct the way of the reformers, then sanctions could come back. So this would strengthen the hand of the reformers.
Cameron's invitation
For many years, Daw [Aunt] Aung San Suu Kyi was allowed, if she wanted to, to leave this country. You wrote that they would roll out the red carpet all the way to the aeroplane, and put you on to it, but never let you return. I hope that today, and I have invited Daw Suu today, to come to London in June, and to come to the United Kingdom in June, to also see your beloved Oxford in June, and that I think is a sign, if we're able to do this, of huge progress, that you will be able to leave your country, to return to your country, and to continue your work as a member of parliament.
Aung San Suu Kyi's reply
Two years ago, I would have said: "Thank you for the invitation, but sorry." Now I am able to say: "Well, perhaps." And that's great progress.
Cameron on Aung San Suu Kyi
Everyone in the United Kingdom has been inspired by your struggle … What an inspiration it is to have followed your struggle, to have watched your incredible courage, and the light that you have shone to all those around the world who want to see freedom, democracy and greater human rights … It is an honour to stand by your side.
Aung San Suu Kyi on Britain "and other very close friends"
They have always understood our need for democracy, our desire to take our place in the world and the aspirations of our people. And we have always shared in the belief that what is necessary for Burma is an end to all ethnic conflict, respect for human rights - which would include the release of political prisoners - and the kind of development aid which will help to empower our people and take our country further towards the road to genuine democracy.
Cameron on the reasons for Burma's move towards democracy
I can't speak for why the regime is acting in the way that it is, but I think it's clear when you look at Burma's neighbours you can see economies that are growing more quickly, you can see poverty that is being tackled more effectively, you're seeing in other countries … democracy going hand in hand with greater economic success and growth.
Cameron was also asked what specific sanctions would be lifted. He said:
The argument that we will be making with our European Union colleagues is that when the sanctions come up for ending in April that we should instead of lifting them entirely, we should suspend them, so make sure they're still capable of being put back in place, but they should be suspended, but this sanctions suspension should cover everything apart from the arms embargo.
The prime minister held a 15-minute one-on-one meeting with Aung San Suu Kyi before the rest of the delegation joined the talks.
I interviewed Nicholas Watt straight after the press conference (apologies for the quality of the line). We discussed Cameron's invitation to Aung San Suu Kyi. Nick said:
Now that she's a member of parliament, the hope is that she can leave the country and come back, and that tells you a very, very significant political thing about the depth of reform here.
Here are the key points from that press conference between Aung San Suu Kyi and David Cameron:
• Cameron said the UK would press the EU to suspend – not lift – its sanctions against Burma, a position backed by Aung San Suu Kyi, the opposition leader. Since the UK has been the only EU member arguing to keep sanctions in place, sanctions are now bound to be suspended, probably after the 23 April meeting of the EU foreign affairs council.
• Cameron invited Aung San Suu Kyi to come to Britain in June. In recent years it has been assumed that if she left Burma she would not be allowed back in, but now, she said, "perhaps" such a visit and return to Burma would be allowed. It seems probably that Cameron would not have made such a public offer if he felt the Burmese government might bar her from returning. Aung San Suu Kyi lived and studied in Britain in the 1960s and again in the 1980s.
Britain is the largest bilateral aid donor to Burma, Cameron says, and that money does not go to the government, it goes to aid organisations.
We are committed to Burma, he says. We are a friend of Burma's.
You have struggled too long under dictatorship, Cameron says, and we want to be your partners in achieving democracy.
And with that the press conference is brought to an end.
Cameron says this is the crossroads of Asia, endowed with enormous natural resources. It shouldn't be as poor as it is today, he says. He is optimistic that if Burma can make these political changes it could then become much more economically successful.
Cameron says when the EU sanctions come up "for ending" in April he will argue that they are suspended.
That should cover everything except the arms embargo, he says.
Let me be clear, he says: there is still much, much more that needs to be done. We know what a long road needs to be travelled between now and 2015, Cameron says.
Burma has been crying out for freedom and it is worth taking that risk, Cameron says.
Aung San Suu Kyi is asked what the strength is of opponents of democracy. She says she does not know what it is but it does not in any way match the strength of those who want democracy. "I'm a cautious optimist," she says, but she is determined to make sure the will of the people is heard.
Cameron says when democracy becomes embedded you can't expect to win 45 byelections in a row.
My colleague Nicholas Watt asks if Aung San Suu Kyi is parlaying with the enemy like her father did. She says she is parlaying with people who are no longer the enemy. She says the byelections showed a revolution of the spirit in Burma.
Cameron says he has invited Aung San Suu Kyi to come to the UK in June and he hopes she will be able to leave Burma and then return to Burma.
She says two years ago she would have said she couldn't go (because she wouldn't have been allowed back) - but now she can say: "Perhaps." And that is progress, she says.
Aung San Suu Kyi is asked about the disappointments of the past. She says they were not disappointments, they were setbacks; she and her colleagues had to take risks then, and they have to take risks now.
Cameron says he can't speak for the regime to say why they are opening up now, but he notes that in Burma's neighbours democracy and economic growth are going hand in hand.
There is much more we need to do - we will keep that pressure on, he says.
If we really want to see freedom and democracy in Burma, we should respond when they take action, Cameron says.
Cameron is asked if suspending sanctions removes the pressure on the government to keep reforming.
I think it's right to respond positively to the steps the president has already made, Cameron says.
But suspending the sanctions rather than lifting them is the right thing to do, he says.
Let's not forget how far things have come, he says. We are standing in a house where you were under house arrest for decades, he says, addressing Aung San Suu Kyi.
I am very, very happy to welcome all of you, not just the prime minister, to Burma, and as this is the time of the water festival, it is a good opportunity to wash away all your sins, if you have any, she says.
She says she hopes this new year, starting on 17 April, will bring democracy to Burma and closer cooperation between Burma and Britain.
Should the opponents of the reformers try to obstruct reforms, suspending rather than lifting the sanctions could show the sanctions could come back, she says.
Aung San Suu Kyi says it is absolutely the right time for Cameron to come.
She says she feels the president, Thein Sein, is genuine about democratic reforms.
I support the suspension of sanctions rather than the lifting of sanctions, she says.
There are so many things that need to happen. More political prisoners need to be released, Cameron says. It is good there was the set of byelections, but he is looking forward to the general election in 2015.
What an inspiration it is to have watched your struggle, he says.
Peaceful change in Burma should be hugely encouraging, he says.
He also mentions malnourishment and poverty in the country.
It is an honour to stand by her side, he says.
He says he is committed to working with her to help Burma makes changes.
We must respond with caution, care and scepticism, but he thinks it is right to suspend sanctions against Burma, Cameron says.
Cameron is speaking now at a joint press conference with Aung San Suu Kyi.
Your courage has been inspirational for people across the world who want to see democracy, freedom and human rights, he tells her.
Pictures are starting to come in now of Cameron and Aung San Suu Kyi at her lakeside house.
BBC News now has its cameras trained on Aung San Suu Kyi's house in Rangoon, waiting for the Burmese opposition leader and David Cameron to emerge and speak to the press.
Lady Kinnock, the former Labour MEP, has been arguing against "radically" changing the EU sanctions regime against Burma. "For us to say now that enough has been done, I think is absolutely wrong and dangerous," she told the BBC.
She did not think the EU should "open up" in terms of trade and investment – and argued firmly against lifting the arms embargo.
She pointed out what a small number of parliamentary seats was up for election in the set of byelections won so comprehensively by Aung San Suu Kyi's party, the National League for Democracy, on 1 April (46 of 664, with 45 won by the NSD).
The Press Association is quoting a Downing Street spokesman as saying: "The prime minister believes that the president [Thein Sein] is sincere in what has happened so far. He is cautiously optimistic for the future."
My colleague Nicholas Watt has just been on the phone from Rangoon, where David Cameron is meeting Aung San Suu Kyi at her house by the famous lake an American was arrested for swimming across.
Nick says there is a party atmosphere at the house because of today's Thingyan water festival. In the beautiful, tranquil grounds of the house, you can hear the thud of trance music coming across the lake and see hoses spraying water in celebration of the festival.
Cameron is due to have talks with her, followed by a press conference, and then dinner with her. It is 4.40pm in Rangoon now.
Nick said there was a real contrast between the party atmosphere around Aung San Suu Kyi's home and the ghost town of the purpose-built capital city where Cameron met the president, Thein Sein.
Nick described an "utterly soulless" capital city – the building of which only began in 2002 – with a 20-lane avenue and an opulent, "over-the-top" presidential palace.
No 10 sources are saying they believe the Burmese president has been sincere about the reform process so far, and the PM is cautiously optimistic about the future.
Nick reports that Cameron is trying to adopt a "careful pose": he wants to acknowledge the reforms, but he is not saying "job done" – he is aware there is a lot more to be done in terms of democratic and economic reform. But he is also conscious that Sein needs support to carry on on this road due to conservatives in the regime who continue to oppose reform.
On Aung San Suu Kyi, Nick said Cameron feels she is an icon she has suffered enormously and he wants to acknowledge her extraordinary sacrifices.
But there will be "no sense of triumphalism" at Aung San Suu Kyi's success in the recent series of byelections, because this is "a delicate process".
Officials are saying the mindset of the Burmese regime is a bit like East Germany looking over Berlin Wall, seeing West Berlin and saying: "Why can't we be like that?" Burma is one of the poorest countries in the region and is looking at its neighbours liberalising and doing well, and wants that kind of success for itself.
Wai Hnin of Burma Campaign UK has just been speaking to BBC News. She had a different view from Marie Lall (see 9.47am) on how useful sanctions had been in forcing the pace of reforms in Burma, and the wisdom of ending sanctions now. Hnin said:
We have seen changes in recent years, but it means the sanctions are working. To remove all the sanctions would be a little bit silly - I'm afraid that these changes will stop.
She pointed out that "there is no democratic system in Burma yet", and said that David Cameron's trip was "a reward to the government in Burma" that needed to be matched with more pressure for democratic reform.
She added: "It's important for him [Cameron] to address the human rights abuses that are still going on in Burma", mentioning political prisoners and attacks on ethnic minorities.
South East Asia expert Dr Marie Lall of the Institute of Education, London, has just appeared on Sky News to say that Cameron's visit has been "absolutely overdue". The reforms in Burma started seven years ago, she said.
The reformist Thein Sein, president since last year, still has "hardliners" in his cabinet, and "the government needs our support to continue on this way", Lall said.
Asked about lifting sanctions, she was emphatic that the measures had done "more harm than good, especially for the ordinary population". They never affected the autocratic regime in power until Sein's presidency, she said.
The sanctions were never an incentive. This [the set of reforms] is an indigenous process which was spearheaded by local civil society.
Save the Children has just emailed to urge Cameron and other leaders to take action to lift millions of Burmese children out of poverty. Kelland Stevenson, Save the Children's country director in Burma, said:
More than a million children under five in Myanmar [Burma] are suffering from chronic malnutrition brought on by poverty and inadequate spending on health care. Chronic malnutrition has severe long term effects on children's health as they grow. Malnutrition limits their physical growth, weakens their immune system and significantly hampers mental development. The government and the donor community should prioritise reforms that help reduce child hunger. Mr Cameron can do his bit by endorsing and encouraging poverty-reduction efforts.
My colleague Nicholas Watt has been accompanying the prime minister on his Asian tour.
He writes that Cameron is expected to offer to provide support for Burma's peace and reconciliation process, with experts involved in the Northern Ireland peace process helping advise different groups on holding substantive dialogue with the aim of securing ceasefires.
Britain will also offer support for better and stronger governance by training officials on sound public financial management, on the rule of law and strengthening parliamentary democracy, involving a parliamentary exchange programme.
Cameron is expected to tell Thein Sein the package of measures can only be introduced if the EU relaxes its sanctions, something Britain is now expected to argue that Europe should do.
The sanctions must be renewed by unanimous agreement. Britain will be looking to lift some altogether and to suspend others. The arms embargo will not be altered.
Nick has also written a piece analysing the pros and cons of Cameron's foreign trip.
Here are a couple of great pictures of David Cameron meeting Thein Sein this morning. In the picture above, they are shaking hands.
In this picture they are talking at the president's office.
The Press Association has more on Cameron's meeting with the Burmese president, Thein Sein, in the country's new capital Naypyidaw, which replaced Rangoon in 2005.
The two leaders met at Sein's palace. Thein told Cameron through a translator: "This visit of your excellency is significant and historical in our bilateral relations. We are very encouraged and we are most appreciative of your kind acknowledgement towards Myanmar."
Speaking on the tarmac as he arrived in Naypyidaw, Cameron said:
This country really matters. For decades it has suffered under a brutal dictatorship. It is also desperately poor. It doesn't have to be this way. There is a government now that says it is committed to reform, that has started to take steps, and I think it is right to encourage those steps.
The prime minister also said he wanted to meet opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, describing her as "a shining example for people who yearn for freedom, for democracy and for progress". He added: "We should be under no illusion about what a long way there is to go."
He said the government had to demonstrate that moves to democracy were "irreversible".
Cameron also said developments in Burma may be "one potential chapter of light" in a "world where there are many dark chapters in history being written".
Of course we should be sceptical. Of course we should be questioning. Of course we shouldn't be naive. Aung San Suu Kyi herself, who has spent so many years in such a long, lonely but powerful struggle, believes that he [Thein] is acting in good faith.
Britain had played a "leading role" in the imposition of sanctions, and would also not be "backwards" in responding to positive changes, he added.
He said it was "also right" to meet Aung San Suu Kyi, "who has shown incredible courage over these past decades and frankly is a shining example to people all the world who yearn for freedom, for democracy, for progress".
We should be under no illusions about what a long way there is to go and how much more the [Burmese] government has to do to show this reform is real and it is irreversible. We should be very cautious and very sceptical about that. We need to see progress on political reform. We need to see prisoners freed and changes that show the reform is irreversible.
The prime minister's convoy drove from the airport of the purpose-built capital down deserted roads. At one point it passed by a group of people who sprayed it with water to mark the Thingyan Burmese water festival.
Good morning. David Cameron has arrived in Burma, becoming the first western leader to visit the country since Aung San Suu Kyi's recent success in a series of parliamentary byelections.
This morning in the capital, Naypyidaw, Cameron met the Burmese president, Thein Sein, who faced down conservatives to allow Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy to contest the recent elections.
And at 10.30am the British prime minister is due to meet Aung San Suu Kyi in Rangoon.
In a speech yesterday in Indonesia Cameron, who is on a whistle-stop tour of the region, paid tribute to both the president and the opposition leader.
The prime minister's visit to Burma is likely to have an immediate impact as it accelerates moves towards the scaling-down of sanctions against the country.
Cameron yesterday gave his strongest hint yet that Britain would take the lead in pressing for a relaxation of EU sanctions and expressed the hope that the recent political reforms would be irreversible.
The prime minister said:
What I see happening in Burma is a potential flowering of freedom and democracy and I think that from everything I've seen – although I will see for myself tomorrow – it seems as if the president of Burma is intent on taking a new path and wants to see a progressive flourishing of freedom and democracy …I hope that following my meetings tomorrow I will have the confidence to go back to my country, to back to others in the European Union, and argue that the change in Burma is irreversible, that they are set on a path towards democracy, that in a world of difficulty and darkness and all sorts of problems, here is one bright light that we should encourage, and we should respond in a way that makes that regime feel that it is moving in the right direction and that the world is on its side.
Britain was, until recently, in the lead in demanding sanctions remain in place. Cameron is now believed to be planning to argue in favour of an immediate change when foreign ministers meet in Brussels on 23 April, barring any diplomatic disaster in Burma today, reports my colleague Nicholas Watt, who is accompanying the PM on his Asian tour. Cameron's visit to Burma is his last stop.
We will be covering events live here throughout the day. Cameron is due to meet Aung San Suu Kyi at around 10.30am, followed by statements to the press at 11.30am.
Ref:guardian.uk
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