Malaysian Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar said he has yet to secure a date from Burma's military junta for his planned visit to press for democratic reforms.

"Not yet," he told reporters when asked if he had fixed a date. He did not elaborate.

Under pressure from the international community, the Assocation of Southeast Asian Nations at its annual meeting in December signalled its impatience with fellow member Burma.

It reached agreement with Rangoon to allow Syed Hamid to visit the country as an Asean envoy to check on the progress of democracy.

The visit was expected to take place in January but Burma said it was too busy moving its capital to receive the Malaysian minister.

Syed Hamid said he would not be frustrated by the delay, adding: "The most important thing is that Myanmar is part of Asean.

"Asean countries have a role to play. We need to have better understanding and continue to hold dialogue with Myanmar," he said.

A former UN envoy to Burma, who quit last month after being denied entry to the country for nearly two years, urged China and the United States to push harder for reforms.

On North Korea

"Nothing is happening now. China must play a bigger role to bring changes in Myanmar," Razali Ismail told AFP .

"The US has to do more. It must try to contact the military junta. They should look at Myanmar as they look at North Korea," he said.

The US and China are involved in six-party talks to get North Korea to abandon its nuclear weapons programme.

Razali said it was the responsibility of China, a close ally of Burma, and the United States to do more to bring reform. "They should be more involved," he said.

Burma's junta brutally crushed pro-democracy demonstrations in 1988 and two years later rejected the result of national elections won by the party of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

In November it extended her house arrest by another six months. The Nobel Peace prizewinner has already spent more than 10 of the last 16 years under house arrest.