Washington – The United States and Myanmar plan to open a high-level dialogue on Tuesday at a meeting in New York, a source familiar with the matter said.

U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Kurt Campbell plans to meet U Thaung, Myanmar’s minister of science, technology and labour, said the source, who spoke on condition that he not be identified because the meeting has yet to be made public.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton last week said that the United States would pursue deeper engagement with Myanmar’s military rulers to try to spur democratic reform but will not ease sanctions for now.

While acknowledging economic sanctions had failed to bring about change in Myanmar, Clinton said Washington had concluded in a policy review that it had to maintain them while enhancing its dialogue with the isolated Southeast Asian nation.

Myanmar plans next year to hold its first election in two decades, which the junta says will bring an end to almost five decades of unbroken military rule. Many analysts suspect the generals will still hold the real power.

Washington has gradually tightened sanctions on the generals who rule the country, formerly known as Burma, to try to force them into political rapprochement with Nobel laureate and opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.