The United States and other democratic states should emphasize the reform process rather than any particular end point. But the long-term objective is simple: the Burmese people need to take charge of their own destiny. For the first time in literally decades, Burma’s future looks positive, even bright. Hopefully the “flickers of progress” now evident in Burma soon will burst into robust flame.

Doug Bandow is a senior fellow at the Cato Institute. A former special assistant to President Reagan, he is the author of Foreign Follies: America's New Global Empire (Xulon).

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