Myanmar ? U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is in Myanmar on a mission to persuade the country’s ruling generals to let in a torrent of foreign assistance for cyclone victims rather than the current trickle.

“The United Nations and all the international community stand ready to help to overcome the tragedy. The main purpose of my being here is to demonstrate my solidarity,” Ban said after arriving in the country.

By the junta’s own count, at least 134,000 people are dead or missing from Cyclone Nargis, which swept through the country’s heartland on May 2-3. The U.N. says up to 2.5 million survivors are hungry and homeless and there are worries about disease outbreaks in the Irrawaddy River delta.

Ban was scheduled today to meet with government ministers and international aid agencies in Yangon. He is also to be flown by helicopter to the hard-hit delta area.