U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called Aung San Suu Kyi, Myanmar's opposition leader, on Sunday night, regarding the recent U.S. decision to loose sanctions on the Southeast Asian country, the State Department said in a statement on Monday.

"They talked about the need for specific steps to promote responsible, transparent investment, empower reformers, and target abusers," said the statement.

The two agreed that the democratic progress in Myanmar remains "fragile" and that the international community needs to help protect against "backsliding," according to the statement.

Clinton assured Aung San Suu Kyi that the United States is keeping its sanction regime on Myanmar in place as an "insurance policy," said the statement.

Last Thursday, U.S. President Barack Obama nominated Derek Mitchell as its first ambassador to Myanmar in 22 years. He also announced that Washington will ease its bans on the "exportation of financial services and new investment" in the Southeast Asian country.

The announcement by the Obama administration was generally viewed as a reward for the recent democratic reforms in Myanmar. The country held its historic parliamentary by-election on April 1, in which the opposition party led by Aung San Suu Kyi secured big gains, winning 43 of 45 parliamentary seats available.