The main opposition party, the National League for Democracy, welcomes the talks on Thursday between its leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, and the junta’s Minister for Relations, ex Maj-Gen Aung Kyi, according to a spokesperson for the NLD, Nyan Win.

Speaking to The Irrawaddy by telephone on Friday, Nyan Win said that the meeting constituted progress and was the first in a series of dialogues.

“However, we (the NLD) do not know the result of the meeting or what they discussed,” he said. “Before the meetings, we want our leader (Suu Kyi) to be allowed to meet with her colleagues first. She must also be set free.”

On the Thursday evening news, the state media reported the meeting, but only as a commentary over silent video clips.

This morning Burmese were surprised to see a large photograph of Suu Kyi with official liaison Aung Kyi adorning the front pages of the junta’s newspapers. It is very unusual for the military government to permit Suu Kyi’s picture to appear in their “mouthpiece” newspapers. However, today the state media also used her full honorific name, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi.

Although the report was short, it was also notable that Suu Kyi’s name was placed in front of the junta minister’s name, the first time the state media has allowed this style of caption to appear.

Critics, however, contend that the junta has previously served up this kind of concession in the media as a public relations exercise both at home and abroad when they were under pressure.

State-run newspapers, such as The New Light of Myanmar, have previously published Aung San Suu Kyi’s picture on only a couple of occasions-in May 2003, after the security forces brutally attacked Suu Kyi and her supporters in Depayin, Sagaing Division; and once when Snr-Gen Than Shwe met with Suu Kyi in January 2002. However, the article went on to blame Suu Kyi for Burma’s political deadlock and economic collapse.