The United States led international praise on Tuesday for a draft ceasefire accord between Myanmar's government and ethnic rebel groups, a move aimed at ending more than 65 years of armed conflict in the country.
Myanmar's semi-civilian government, which took power in 2011 after 49 years of military rule, has made ending hostilities with the many groups that have taken up arms since independence in 1948 one of its priorities.
This week's meetings were the latest of seven rounds of talks to negotiate the agreement since 2013. The government had targeted reaching a deal before a general election expected to take place in November this year.
Myanmar President Thein Sein attended the ceremonial signing by government and ethnic rebel negotiators. Ethnic representatives will now take the draft document to the leaders of the rebel groups. "A nationwide ceasefire agreement would mark a potentially historic step towards achieving peace and national reconciliation, which has eluded the country for decades," the US embassy said in a statement.
The United Nations called the draft agreement a "significant achievement" and a first step towards larger political negotiations. Canada also lauded the achievement. "Today's agreement is a signal that new levels of trust, confidence and cooperation are possible between former enemies and that the seeds of change in Myanmar are beginning to sprout," Vijay Nambiar, the UN special adviser on Myanmar, said in a statement.
Myanmar's authorities have been unsuccessful in meeting previous targets for concluding nationwide peace pacts. Sporadic resurgences of violence and complaints about the military's role in the complex process have hampered progress.
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