The HIV/AIDS crisis, UK assistance and the general political situation. "The Irrawaddy interviewed Vicky Bowman, the British Ambassador to Burma. She previously worked in the British Embassy in Rangoon from 1990 to 1993 before returning in Dec 2002. The UK recently announced that it would contribute 10 million pounds (US $15.7 million) over the next three years to combat the spread of HIV/AIDS in Burma... Question: Why did the British government decide to take action now? Answer: We?ve been providing some support to NGOs to combat HIV for several years, for example for subsidized condoms. But we believe that the time has now come to increase our support, both because the scale of the problem is such that it needs a significant response, and because the climate for working on HIV/AIDS in Burma is gradually improving. Q: Do you think the Burmese military has realized the seriousness of the AIDS epidemic?..."