European Union Suspends Most Myanmar Sanctions

The European Union agreed Monday to suspend nearly all of its punitive sanctions against Myanmar even as a political dispute over the wording of a clause in the country’s Constitution kept Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, the leader of the opposition, from attending her first day in Parliament.

The dispute, which turns on a few words in the oath of office used by members of Parliament, threatens to slow a reconciliation process between the democratic opposition and the military-backed establishment that until now had surprised observers of the country for its speed.

Germany’s deputy foreign minister, Michael Link, said in Luxembourg on Monday that “things have been going in the right direction, clearly and faster than most of us had thought.”

But Mr. Link made clear that the sanctions against Myanmar, formerly called Burma, were being suspended, not lifted. The European Union is also keeping its arms embargo in place. “We’re not completely over the mountain, but I believe now is the right time to have a temporary lifting,” Mr. Link said.

Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi and 42 other newly elected members of her party, the National League for Democracy, were absent from the opening session of Parliament on Monday.

Party representatives have said that because the party disagrees with several parts of the Constitution, it would like its legislators to use a modified oath that, roughly translated, says they will respect the Constitution, not safeguard it. One of the party’s campaign platforms in recent elections was to amend the document.