(Adds details and quotes)
By Matt Spetalnick
WASHINGTON, Feb 1 (Reuters) - The United States is
deeply concerned about Russia's supply of military equipment to
Myanmar's junta and will continue to seek ways to limit such
cooperation between the two countries, a senior U.S. State
Department official said on Wednesday.
Speaking in a telephone briefing on the two-year anniversary
of Myanmar's military coup, U.S. State Department Counselor
Derek Chollet told reporters that Washington would keep looking
for ways to increase sanctions to make it difficult for the
junta "to acquire arms or to generate revenue."
He spoke shortly after Myanmar's junta extended the
country's state of emergency by another six months. Junta leader
General Min Aung Hlaing also said multi-party elections must be
held "as the people desire", but he did not provide a timeline.
Chollet reiterated the Biden administration's position that
"any regime-led elections have no chance of being free or fair."
"Any election without the full participation of Myanmar's
people would represent a naked attempt by the junta to cling to
power," he added.
Asked about Russia's military ties to Myanmar, he said
Moscow was the junta's most reliable military supplier while the
junta was among Russia's diminishing "circle of friends"
following its invasion of Ukraine last year.
"It's something we are deeply concerned about ... because of
course Russian military capability is being used directly
against the people of Myanmar," Chollet said, adding that
Washington was seeking ways to restrict that relationship.
The United States and its allies imposed further sanctions
on Myanmar on Tuesday with curbs on energy officials and junta
members, among others.
The Southeast Asian country's top generals led a putsch in
February 2021, overthrowing the elected government of Nobel
laureate Aung San Suu Kyi after five years of tense
power-sharing.
Myanmar has been in chaos since the coup, with a resistance
movement fighting the military on multiple fronts after a bloody
crackdown on opponents that saw Western sanctions re-imposed.
(Reporting by Matt Spetalnick; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and
Daniel Wallis)
Reuters Messaging:
matt.spetalnick@thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))
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