U.S. to ease restrictions on Myanmar WASHINGTON, April 5 (UPI) -- Washington is close to sending an ambassador to Myanmar and easing financial restrictions in response to political developments, the secretary of state said. Myanmar last weekend had elections to fill 48 seats in the country's Senate and lower house of Parliament. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced Washington was taking a series of steps to ease diplomatic pressure on Myanmar in response to democratic developments. Clinton said the moves include naming an envoy and loosening financial restrictions on the country. "Sanctions and prohibitions will stay in place on individuals and institutions that remain on the wrong side of these historic reform efforts," she said in a statement. Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung Sang Suu Kyi, an opposition leader in Myanmar, won a seat representing the coastal township of Kawhmu during the elections. Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy Party won elections in 1990 but the victory was never recognized by the former military-led government.