Brussels: The European Commission said Thursday it had earmarked a total 15 million euros in aid for victims of the political crisis in Myanmar (Burma) and for refugees living along the Thai-Myanmar border.

The aid package will go towards meeting the basic needs of around 770,000 most vulnerable citizens in Myanmar, helping to provide health services, food, water and sanitation, the Commission said.

Food and cooking fuel as well as curative health, water and sanitation facilities will be given to around 130,000 refugees living in camps along the border between Myanmar and Thailand.

Due to the long duration of their displacement, refugees today almost totally depend on international help, the Commission underlined.

“Burma/Myanmar has become a silent humanitarian crisis, with many vulnerable people, notably ethnic minorities in the border areas, living in an extremely vulnerable situation,” European Union development commissioner Louis Michel said in a statement.

Since 1992, the E.U. has supported people in Myanmar and refugees along the Myanmar-Thai border with 89.5 million euros.

The number of refugees along the Thai-Burmese border has increased from around 10,000 in 1984 to about 145,000 in August 2005.

Inside Myanmar the health situation is very precarious, the Commission said. Rates of under-five mortality and malnutrition amongst children are very high compared with those of regional neighbours.

The main causes of premature death in Myanmar are malaria, HIV/AIDS, acute respiratory infections and diarrheal diseases.

Water and sanitation problems are also very dramatic, with water- borne illnesses accounting for the death of every second under-five year old.

According to UNICEF, diarrhea is the second cause of mortality among young children.

Myanmar has been under military rule since 1962. On-going armed conflict with ethnic minority groups has led to a flux of refugees (around 145,000) and internally displaced people (estimated around 525,000), according to the Commission.

The human rights situation in the country is a subject of concern for a wide number of international organizations. There is no independent judiciary in Myanmar, and political opposition to the military government is not tolerated.