Myanmar: Myanmar’s central bank rejected a UN report that it could still receive money and weapons for the country’s military government’s fight against a coup, saying financial institutions under the bank’s supervision were complying with regulations.
In a statement published in the junta newspaper on Saturday, the Central Bank of Myanmar said, “We intend to oppose the report of the UN Special Rapporteur.” “The UN report seriously harms the interests of Myanmar citizens and relations between Myanmar and other countries.”
Myanmar has imported $253 million worth of weapons, dual-use technology, manufacturing equipment and other goods, although international efforts to isolate the junta appear to have curbed its ability to buy military equipment, Myanmar human rights reporter Tom Andrews reported Wednesday. Materials from 12 months to March.
The report said Myanmar was getting help from international banks for the purchase, including from its Southeast Asian neighbor, Thailand.
Facing its biggest challenge since the 2021 coup against Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi’s government, Myanmar’s military is struggling to balance a multi-year conflict and a collapsing economy.
Western countries have imposed a number of financial sanctions on Myanmar’s military, banks and related businesses.
The central bank said thorough due diligence has been carried out on all business transactions and local and international bank transactions related to Myanmar.
“Financial transactions are only for the import of essential goods and basic necessities such as medicines and medical equipment, agricultural and livestock supplies, fertilizers, edible oil and fuel for Myanmar citizens,” he said.
Exports from Singapore fell by more than $10 million from $110 million in 2022, but Thai companies in Thailand partially filled the gap, with weapons and materials worth $120 million in 2023, more than double a year earlier, the UN report said.
Thailand’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Thursday that the country’s banking and financial institutions follow the same protocols as other major financial centers, and that the government will review the UN rapporteur’s report.
