US slaps sanctions on Myanmar’s defense ministry, banks
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The US and other Western nations have imposed multiple rounds of sanctions on Myanmar’s military junta since it seized power in a coup in 2021.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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WASHINGTON/BANGKOK - The United States on Wednesday levelled sanctions against Myanmar’s Ministry of Defence and two banks used by the South-east Asian country’s military to purchase arms and other goods in foreign currencies, according to the Treasury Department’s website on Wednesday.
The banks were named as Myanmar Foreign Trade Bank (MFTB) and Myanma Investment and Commercial Bank (MICB), which receive and transmit foreign currencies for Myanmar’s government, including state-owned enterprises that raise much of the junta’s revenues.
Myanmar is mired in violence and instability stemming from a military coup and lethal suppression of pro-democracy protests, during which hundreds of people have been killed and many thousands arrested, with widespread allegations of arbitrary detention, forced disappearances and torture.
Experts say the sanctions on the banks, while short of targeting gas projects that are a major source of revenue for the military, which seized control of Myanmar in February 2021, could have an impact on the junta’s ability to fund its war against ethnic groups and insurgencies.
A February report by campaign group EarthRights International said the two banks were the “Myanmar government’s foreign currency treasuries” and were now under junta control.
“The junta relies on foreign currency to obtain many products, including jet fuel, parts for small arms production, and other supplies that cannot be bought with the Myanmar kyat,” EarthRights International said.
“As a result, sanctions against MFTB and MICB could contribute substantially to cutting off the junta’s access to foreign currency, especially if combined with strong enforcement.”
On Tuesday, news outlets in Thailand reported that Washington would announce the new sanctions as early as Wednesday.
The US Embassy in Thailand said in a statement that the US “continues to look for ways to promote accountability for the coup and related violence, including efforts to block revenue to the regime”.
“Our goal in these designations is to constrain the regime’s access to US dollars and to promote accountability for the regime as it continues committing horrific acts of violence.”
The US and other Western nations have imposed multiple rounds of sanctions seized power in a coup in 2021.
A spokesman for Myanmar’s military junta said it was not worried about any new sanctions.
Major-General Zaw Min Tun told state media channel MWD on Tuesday evening that the country has experienced sanctions before, and it will not face losses if there are new sanctions on Myanmar state-owned banks.
He said the US was “just doing this to cause difficulties in economics and politics”, adding: “These kinds of things will cause unnecessary delays while we walk towards the multi-party democratic system.”
One of the Thai media reports, by Bangkok Business News, cited Thai sources as saying the sanctions would impact Thailand and other countries in the region financially because of connections with local banks.
The US embassy said it has had regular conversations with the Thai government on Myanmar, including how to “mitigate the potential impact of any sanctions on Thailand or other countries”.
Thailand’s outgoing military-backed government earlier this week hosted controversial talks aimed at re-engaging with Myanmar’s military, saying dialogue was necessary to protect its border with the strife-torn country, even as top diplomats of key South-east Asian neighbours continued to shun the junta.
Critics said the meeting in Pattaya had undermined a unified Asean approach
But Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, who had himself seized power in a coup in 2014, said direct talks were necessary to protect Thailand. REUTERS
