By WARREN HOGE and SETH MYDANS

UNITED NATIONS, Oct. 5 — Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said today that the use of force to put down protests in Myanmar was “abhorrent and unacceptable” and that the government of the country must release those it has arrested and start a dialogue with political opponents.

Mr. Ban made his remarks to the Security Council just before his special envoy, Ibrahim Gambari, reported on his four-day emergency trip to the country this week. Mr. Gambari was dispatched after the junta ruling Myanmar began a brutal crackdown on Buddhist monks and those who joined them in recent protests against the government.

The junta made a second small conciliatory gesture today, allowing the senior American official in Myanmar, Shari Villarosa, to meet with Deputy Foreign Minister Maung Myint. No details of the meeting were immediately
released.

The United States currently has no ambassador in the country as a gesture of disapproval of the regime. Ms. Villarosa has been a vocal critic of the military junta and its crackdown that includes a continuing wave of arrests.

On Thursday, the junta made its first acknowledgment of the mass arrests, and said it still held about 1,400 people.

People reached by telephone in Yangon said the streets had a look of normalcy today, as if nothing had happened. But a foreign aid worker there said the nights were a time of terror as people were dragged from their homes as part of a continuing wave of arrests.

At the United Nations, Mr. Ban said: “I must reiterate that the use of force against peaceful demonstrators is abhorrent and unacceptable. While I am relieved to hear of reports that some military forces have been
withdrawn and that some restrictions have been eased, the overall situation stillremains of serious concern, especially with regard to the unknown predicament of the large number of individuals who were arrested
without due process.”

He called for their release “without further delay.” He added: “Now more than ever before, the government of Myanmar should take bold actions toward democratization and respect for human rights.”

He said that national reconciliation must be “accelerated and be made as broad-based, inclusive and transparent as possible.”

He also said that a “united Security Council could play an important supporting role in the ongoing efforts of the United Nations.”

While the Council has been united in its support of Mr. Gambari’s mission, China and Russia, both permanent members, have argued that the crisis does not constitute the kind of threat to international peace and security
that calls for the involvement of the Council.

China’s ambassador, Wang Guangya, told Council members today that any action that was not “prudent and responsible” would make the situation worse.

“It is quite understandable for the outside world to express concern and expectation regarding the situation on the ground, however, pressure would not serve any purpose or would lead to confrontation or even the loss
of dialogue and cooperation between Myanmar and the international community, including the United Nations,” he said.

He added, “If the situation in Myanmar takes a worse turn because of external intervention, it would be the people of Myanmar who will bear the brunt.”

Zalmay Khalilzad, the American ambassador, argued that the crisis in Myanmar was having direct effect on its region and the world because it was “closely tied” to the flight of refugees across the country’s borders, the
growth in drug traffic and the spread of infectious diseases.

He said pointedly that the situation “should be unacceptable to countries with regional influence” over Myanmar.

The Council must now “rachet up the pressure” on Myanmar, he said, noting that the United States had blocked the assets of 14 officials and subjected more than 200 others to a travel ban.

If Myanmar did not take action “in a timely manner”, he said, the United States would introduce a resolution in the Security Council imposing sanctions on the country. “It is time for the Council to do more than just listen to a briefing,” he said.

He said that the United States was disappointed in the regime’s unwillingness to let Mr. Gambari see all the people he wanted to and said that the offer made by the senior general, Than Shwe, to meet with Daw
Aung San Suu Kyi, the opposition leader held under house arrest, came with “unrealistic conditions.”

According to state television, the ruling general told Mr. Gambari that he would see her only if she gave up promoting four activities, which he identified as “confrontation, utter devastation, economic sanctions on
Myanmar, other sanctions.”

Gen. Than Shwe made the surprise announcement on Thursday that he was willing to sit down with the pro-democracy leader, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, who remains under house arrest as she has been for 12 of the last 18 years.

But he attached conditions that her political party said had little substance. He said she should stop calling for international sanctions and stop urging the people of Myanmar to confront the military regime.

U Thein Lwin, a spokesman for her political party, the National League for Democracy, told the Associated Press the conditions were meaningless because Mrs. Aung San Suu Kyi “does not have a confrontational attitude, nor
does she encourage sanctions.”

Analysts were mostly skeptical of the junta’s gestures, saying it had in the past tried to satisfy international criticism with vague and empty promises of reform.

Warren Hoge reported from the United Nations and Seth Mydans from Bangkok.