Burma junta approves visas for 1670 cyclone aid workers

BURMA'S military regime has approved visas for more than 1500 international aid workers to help victims of Cyclone Nargis, it has emerged.

The state media of the country, also known as Myanmar, said half of the workers were involved in relief operations in storm-hit regions.

Foreign aid staffers were initially barred from cyclone-affected areas and the ruling military junta was criticised for its sluggish response to the May 2-3 disaster, which killed 84,500 people and left nearly 54,000 missing.

During a visit by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in late May, the government agreed to allow foreign aid workers into the Irrawaddy delta, though it placed restrictions on their movements.

The New Light of Myanmar newspaper said the government has now issued 1670 visas to foreigners from the United Nations, non-government organisations and individuals.

The announcement comes after US Defence Secretary Robert Gates said last week that Burma's military junta had been "deaf and dumb" to offers of aid to its thousands of cyclone victims.

The generals' obstruction of international efforts to help cyclone victims cost "tens of thousands of lives", he said.