The Secretary General of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Surin Pitsuwan, recently told VOA that Washington's willingness to talk with Burma, also known as Myanmar, is opening a "new ballgame" for the region.

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Financial markets in much of the region are opening to foreign firms, creating opportunities to get in before the competition heats up.

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In short, the region is opening.

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Clogged ports and airports and poor road and railways connections meant that the region's opening to foreign trade in the 1980s and 1990s brought less benefit than it should have done.

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