The foreign secretary of the Philippines arrived in Myanmar Thursday, hoping to help the ruling junta on the road to restoring democracy in their country.

Foreign Secretary Alberto Romulo is scheduled to spend three days in Myanmar, traveling to Mandalay, the ancient city of Bagan and the new administrative capital of Naypyidaw.

He declined to answer reporters’ questions after touching down in Yangon, but said in a statement in Manila earlier that the trip would give a chance to see “how the country’s national reconciliation and democratization process is progressing on the ground.”

“The Philippines has always supported Myanmar’s roadmap to democracy, and I hope to hear from Myanmar’s leaders how we can help Myanmar move forward on this path,” he said.

Romulo was scheduled to visit tourist sites in Yangon and attend a dinner hosted by his Myanmar counterpart Nyan Win on Thursday, and meet with the junta’s leader, Senior Gen. Than Shwe, on Friday.

Romulo is the latest official from the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations to visit the reclusive nation, one of the Philippines’ partners in the regional bloc.

He earlier told reporters in Manila he was unsure if he would be allowed to meet detained pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, but he said a meeting with the Nobel laureate was not a condition for accepting the invitation to visit Myanmar, also called Burma.

The Philippines took over ASEAN’s rotating chairmanship from Malaysia last month. Diplomats from the Philippines embassy said Romulo is visiting Myanmar as a Philippine envoy and not as an ASEAN representative.

Myanmar has been under military control since 1962 with the latest junta coming into power in 1988 after troops brutally suppressed a pro-democracy uprising lead by Suu Kyi.