The Burmese military government is facing growing international frustration over its slowness in accepting foreign assistance — days after a cyclone devastated the south of the country.

The American Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice, urged Burma to accept millions of dollars in aid waiting to be delivered.

The US Charge d’affaires in Burma, Shari Villarosa, described conditions there as horrendous — one hundred thousand people had died and almost all buildings had been destroyed.

The UN’s head of humanitarian assistance, John Holmes, said the Burmese government was cooperating but needed to move a lot faster.

The French Foreign Minister, Bernard Kouchner, said the UN Security Council could pass a resolution to force Burma to accept aid.

Burmese survivors’ desperate plight

The southern Irrawaddy delta is littered with many dead bodies

In Burma, wide areas of the southern Irrawaddy delta — which bore the brunt of the cyclone — remain under water.

Reports say the place is littered with dead bodies and the bloated carcasses of cattle.

A BBC correspondent in the delta says much of the region is hidden behind broken bridges and blocked roads. Survivors are desperate for food and shelter.

While the government negotiates about visas, people are probably dying.