MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Philippine Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario says his country believes a recent assurance by Burma leader Thein Sein that democratic reforms in the former military-ruled nation are now irreversible.

The Philippines was once Burma’s most vocal critic in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, which groups the two countries along with eight others. Burma’s dismal human records has led it to be regarded as the group’s “black sheep.”

Del Rosario told The Associated Press on Tuesday that he was assured by Thein Sein in a recent Burma visit that the sweeping reforms there were “now irreversible.”

Del Rosario says: “On the basis of many positive developments, we are convinced that the country is firmly on a democratization track.”