UK considering sanctions on Myanmar: minister

By AFP
12 February 2021
UK considering sanctions on Myanmar: minister
British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab. Photo: EPA

Britain is "urgently" considering imposing sanctions on Myanmar over last week's coup, Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said Thursday after the US announced sanctions against the military leadership.

London "is urgently looking at further measures under our own sanctions regimes," Raab tweeted.

He expressed support after President Joe Biden on Wednesday announced sanctions against the Southeast Asian nation's generals and demanded they relinquish power.

"The UK welcomes @POTUS steps today to send a strong message to the military regime," Raab tweeted.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson last week condemned the coup in Myanmar and the imprisonment of civilian de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

The UN Human Rights Council is to hold a special session on Friday to discuss the ongoing political crisis in Myanmar after an official request by Britain and the European Union.

Britain last year announced sanctions targeting two Myanmar generals over the treatment of the Rohingya, a persecuted Muslim minority.

© AFP