US President Barack Obama had high praise for Myanmar's democratic reform during the first visit by an American president to the country, while also announcing the resumption of a US aid program worth $170 million.
Chinese observers said China did not need to worry about the closer relationship between Myanmar and the US, as Myanmar can seek all manner of cooperation while it opens up, including traditional ties with China.
Obama, greeted by enthusiastic crowds in the former capital Yangon, met President Thein Sein, who has spearheaded reforms since taking office in March 2011, and opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
"I shared with President Thein Sein our belief that the process of reform that he is taking is one that will move this country forward," Obama told reporters, with Thein Sein at his side.
Thein Sein responded that the two sides would move forward "based on mutual trust, respect and understanding."
Obama's Southeast Asian trip, coming less than two weeks after his reelection, was aimed at showing how serious he is about shifting the US strategic focus eastwards as America winds down wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The so-called "Asia pivot" is also meant to counter China's rising influence, according to Reuters.
Obama met Suu Kyi, who led the struggle against military rule and is now a lawmaker, at the lakeside home where she spent years under house arrest.
Suu Kyi later thanked Obama for supporting Myanmar's political reform process. She did strike a note of caution, saying that the most difficult time was "when we think that success is in sight."
Obama recalled Suu Kyi's years of captivity and said she was "an icon of democracy who has inspired people not just in this country but around the world."
"Today marks the next step in a new chapter between the United States and Burma," he said, using her preferred name for the country.
Zhu Zhenming, deputy director of the Southeast Asia Research Institute under the Yunnan Academy of Social Sciences, said Obama's visit to Myanmar was consistent with his administration's policy in paying more attention to Southeast Asia, which is a pillar of the US' Asia pivot strategy.
"The US, along with its Western allies, has imposed sanctions on Myanmar for more than two decades, which cannot easily be lifted by a single visit and loud praise of a serving head of state," Zhu said.
The United States has softened sanctions and removed a ban on most imports from Myanmar in response to its reforms, but it has set more conditions to be met before the full normalization of relations, including efforts to end ethnic conflict.
"The US is on course to start normalizing its relations with Myanmar," Zhu said. "China should not overreact to this 'normalization' as it does not pose a threat to China-Myanmar ties."
Zhu said China should also encourage change in Myanmar, as its openness is not only beneficial the West.
"The West needs time to get accustom ed to Myanmar's way of doing business, but Chinese investments have already been in place for over two decades," Zhu said.
Zhu's ideas were echoed by Li Chenyang, director of the Myanmar Research Center of Yunnan University. "China's policy toward Myanmar is highly consistent, compared to that of the US, since 1988 when the military took power in Myanmar," Li said. "China alone cannot satisfy Myanmar's need (for economic development), and it is a natural choice by Myanmar to seek more cooperation with other countries."
Neither the US nor China poses any threat to Myanmar, so its leaders have no impetus to seek an alliance with either one to counter the other, Zhu said.
Obama announced the resumption of the USAID program in Myanmar during his visit. An administration official said the program would include assistance worth $170 million in total for the fiscal years of 2012 and 2013, but that this would be dependent on further reforms.
Reuters contributed to this story
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