Burma to seek ASEAN help and won't allow foreigners

Cyclone-hit Burma could seek assistance from Southeast Asian nations at a meeting in Singapore but is unlikely to allow foreigners to enter the country, The Straits Times quoted Singapore's foreign minister as saying.

"It depends on what they want to pursue, we've...offered our help and I believe the Burma government will come to that meeting with a list of requests and we try to meet them as best as we can," the paper quoted George Yeo as telling reporters after wrapping up a visit to North Korea.

"They've been accepting foreign aid but they have said repeatedly that they'd prefer not to accept foreign personnel. We have to respect their wishes because it's their country."

Foreign Ministers from 10 Southeast Asian nations will meet in Singapore on Monday to discuss ways to help Burma, following Cyclone Nargis which is feared to have killed as many as 100,000.

Yeo said the ministers will meet to hammer out details of how the regional grouping could help Burma.

"We can't really be involved in the distribution work but where we can be helpful in the restoration of services, maybe in the building of schools and in providing materials for the construction of homes, infrastructure, we will try to be as helpful as we can be," he said.