U.S. President Barack Obama hugs Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi after making a speech at her residence in Yangon on Monday, November 19. Obama met the democracy icon during a historic visit to Yangon aimed at encouraging political reforms in the former pariah state.
(CNN) -- President Obama is on his way to making history this weekend with a trip to Asia that includes a stop in Myanmar -- a first for any American president.
Obama's three-day journey to the region also means visits to Thailand and Cambodia, where he will attend the East Asia Summit.
In Myanmar, also known as Burma, Obama will "speak to civil society to encourage Burma's ongoing democratic transition," according to the White House. He will meet with President Thein Sein and activist Aung San Suu Kyi.
U.S. lifts Myanmar import ban ahead of Obama visit
Global storm clouds
The trip comes as Myanmar's new reformist president has created a opening for further democracy there.
Under Thein Sein, the Myanmar government has released hundreds of political prisoners in the past year, part of a series of reforms that have followed decades of repressive military rule. Western governments have responded to the efforts by starting to ease sanctions put in place to pressure the military regime.
Myanmar authorities have also engaged in peace talks with rebel ethnic groups and allowed Suu Kyi's party, the National League for Democracy, to successfully participate in special elections for the national parliament in April.
"I think the president's message when he goes is going to be one of welcoming the progress that has taken place, noting the truly historic developments that we've seen over the course of the last year, but also underscoring that more work needs to be done to insure a full transition to civilian rule to ensure a full transition to democracy, and to bring about national reconciliation," said Ben Rhodes, deputy national security adviser for strategic communications.
Opinion: Aung San Suu Kyi and the power of unity
Suu Kyi, a democratic freedom activist who spent 15 years under house arrest, traveled to Washington earlier this year to accept the U.S. Congressional Gold Medal.
She was freed from house arrest two years ago and elected to the Myanmar parliament this year, a notable moment in the country's political history.
Loading weather data ...
© 2013 Cable News Network. Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Local residents gather outside Aung San Suu Kyi's house as U.S. President Obama met with her on Monday.
U.S. President Obama is greeted by Myanmar pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi at her residence in Yangon on Monday.
U.S. President Obama shakes hands with Myanmar's President Thein Sein in Yangon on Monday.
U.S. President Obama and Myanmar's President Thein Sein hold a meeting at the regional parliament building in Yangon on Monday.
U.S. President Obama speaks at the University of Yangon on Monday.
U.S. President Obama (3rd L) and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton (front R) are escorted around the grounds as they visit the Shwedagon pagoda in Yangon on Monday.
U.S. President Obama performs a ritual as U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton looks on at a visit to the Shwedagon pagoda in Yangon on Monday.
U.S. President Obama is greeted by a local woman as he arrives with U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in Yangon, Myanmar, on Monday.
U.S. President Obama waves after stepping off his flight.
U.S. President Obama is greeted by a contingent at the Yangon International airport on Monday.
Local residents line up along the street with cameras as Obama's motorcade drives to the Parliament House in Yangon.
Local residents wait in anticipation as Obama's motorcade drives to the Parliament House in Yangon.
A girl holds American flags that she just purchased at a flag shop as Yangon, Myanmar, prepares for Obama's visit. Obama will be the first U.S. president to visit Myanmar, also known as Burma, during his four-day tour of Southeast Asia, which will also include visits to Thailand and Cambodia.
Two men silk-screen Obama T-shirts at a shop in Yangon on Sunday in preparation for Obama's visit.
A Burmese woman fixes an American flag onto a wooden stick at a flag shop in Yangon on Sunday.
A Burmese man walks by graffiti depicting the U.S. president on Saturday in Yangon.
Kyu Kyu Mar, owner of Super silk screening shop, holds a T-shirt printed with an image of U.S. President Obama on Friday in Yangon.
A Buddhist Monk reads a local newspaper carrying a picture of U.S. President Obama in downtown Yangon on Saturday.
A Burmese worker is seen in a flag shop surrounded by American flags on Friday in Yangon.
Cups printed with pictures of US President Barack Obama and Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi are displayed at a shop in downtown Yangon on Saturday.
T-shirts printed with pictures of US President Barack Obama and Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi at a shop in downtown Yangon on Saturday
|