Burma's leader has urged international donor nations to help in the development of the country's battered economy and in improving the living standards of its impoverished population.

Speaking Saturday at the first Development and Cooperation Forum in the administrative capital of Naypyitaw, President Thein Sein told delegates that Burma would fulfill those goals more successfully if it received assistance from the international community.

The president also touched on the ethnic conflicts raging in Burma, telling the delegates that peace and stability go hand-in-hand with economic progress.

The government announced Friday that its troops will halt the offensive against Kachin rebels in the north by Saturday.