US sanctions on Myanmar has now been lifted following Aung San Suu Kyi’s cautious nod in an attempt to save the country’s isolated economy after political reforms took place.
The Obama administration announced on Thursday that two-decades worth of sanctions will be suspended, while keeping a hand on energy and natural resources for leverage to encourage further reforms.
The lift took effect despite warnings of continued human rights abuses in the country. “We continue to have concerns, including remaining political prisoners, ongoing conflict, and serious human-rights abuses in ethnic areas”,
President Obama said in a statement. US warned companies against investing in “bad actors”, or entities that are associated with the Myanmar military. However, the actual impact of the lift remains unclear given the number of military individuals backing the energy and resource sectors of the Burmese economy. Remaining bans include imports from Myanmar.
