American eyes are on Iran – not Burma

There must have been a chorus of "About time too!" when David Miliband announced late on Tuesday night on BBC Radio that the UK, France and the US were considering unilateral military intervention to help the Burma flood victims. The announcement was pretty cautious and the Foreign Secretary said the crew of HMS Westminster would go in only if it was practicable.

The sight of the gathering of the Royal Navy frigate, the American assault carrier Essex and assorted French ships, including a landing craft, marshalled off the coast of Burma - yet metaphorically sitting on their hands - is truly amazing. Why on earth haven't they moved in to help the millions in distress in the Irriwaddy delta, where people are still picking corpses out of the trees and are desperate to find even a drop of water