Oslo  - Norway criticized the sentencing Tuesday of Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi saying Myanmar's military rulers "missed" a chance to show they wanted a democratic development.

"With this sentence the regime missed an opportunity to show that it wanted an inclusive and democratic development in the country," Norwegian Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Store said in a statement.

"Releasing Aung San Suu Kyi would have been a step in the right direction before the elections planned next year," Store added.

Suu Kyi, 64, was Tuesday sentenced for breaking the terms of her detention. The house-arrest detention was to last 18 months.

The Norwegian foreign minister said it "was important to secure an international response to the sentence" and he planned to discuss the issue with United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon who is due to visit Norway at the end of August.

Suu Kyi, leader of the National League for Democracy, was awarded the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize. She was however unable to attend the award ceremony in the Norwegian capital, Oslo.

Former Norwegian premier Kjell Magne Bondevik who heads the Oslo Centre for Peace and Human Rights also slammed the verdict.

"This conviction is totally unacceptable and without legitimacy. It is time for the UN Secretary General to initiate a strong reaction from the international community, including China, India and Russia," Bondevik said.

Bondevik was next week due to visit China and said he planned to discuss the issue during that visit. (dpa)