Obama: Burma is moving 'in a better direction'

President Obama has said Burma's former military leaders must keep going with their democratic reforms, if they want America's support.

He was speaking on the eve of a visit to Burma, the first by a US president.

Mr Obama said it was an acknowledgement that the country was taking steps in a better direction.

He was speaking in Thailand, at the start of a tour of a region that he said would shape America's security in the century ahead.

Critics say it is premature for Mr Obama to visit Burma, where there are still concerns about political prisoners and ethnic violence.