Mar. 17 - France’s foreign minister said on Tuesday that the European Union would next week approve sanctions against the business interests of those responsible for last month’s military coup in Myanmar.
“The technical discussions are being finished in Brussels and we will confirm them next Monday,” Jean-Yves Le Drian told a hearing in the French Senate, referring to the next meeting of EU foreign ministers.
According to diplomats and internal documents seen by Reuters, the measures will target companies “generating revenue for, or providing financial support to, the Myanmar Armed Forces”.
While the bloc maintains an arms embargo against Myanmar, and has applied sanctions to some senior military officers since 2018, the measures would be its most significant since the coup.
“Obviously (we) will suspend all budgetary support and also there will be measures directly targeting those responsible for the military coup d’etat and hitting the individuals and their own economic interests,” Le Drian said. (Reuters)