WASHINGTON, Jan 31, 1998 AP - A top State Department official warned Asian governments today to respect political freedoms if they want to succeed in their efforts to overcome the region's current economic downturn.

Speaking at the release of the State Department's annual report on the state of human rights throughout the world, Deputy Secretary of State Strobe Talbott said today that rights go "to the heart of our response to the financial crisis that is now gripping Asia".

"There is a connection between economic freedom and political freedom, between open markets and open societies, between transparency of governance and the resilience of an economy. Asia is a case in point," he said.

In an apparent jab at the "Asian values" concept of strong leadership and limited democracy, Talbott cited the "people power" revolt in the Philippines and the emergence of South Korea as a multi-party democracy to demonstrate that parts of the continent already had adopted liberal democratic practices.