Myanmar, UN expert exposes $1 billion ‘death trade’ to Myanmar army

NEW YORK – Myanmar’s military has imported at least $1 billion worth of weapons, as well as raw materials to make them. It has been happening since February 2021, when there was a coup in the Asian country. All this according to a new report published today by the UN Special Rapporteur on the human rights situation in Myanmar, Tom Andrews, the Special Rapporteur on the human rights situation in Myanmar, a former US Congressman from Maine. According to this report, UN member states are enabling this trade through total complicity, lax enforcement of existing bans and easily circumvented sanctions.

Accused of crimes continue to have access to weapons. “Despite overwhelming evidence of the ex-Burma military’s heinous crimes against the Burmese people themselves, the generals continue to have access to advanced weapon systems, spare parts for fighter jets, raw materials and production equipment for the domestic arms manufacturing,” Andrews said. “Those who supply these weapons are able to avoid penalties by using front companies and setting up new ones by relying on lax enforcement. “The good news is that we now know who supplies these weapons and the jurisdictions in which they operate. Member states must now step up and stop the flow of these weapons,” the expert said.

The Special Rapporteur’s document. While calling for a blanket ban on the sale or transfer of arms to the Myanmar military, Andrews called on member states to enforce existing bans by coordinating sanctions against arms dealers and sources of foreign exchange. The Special Rapporteur’s paper, “The Billion Dollar Death Trade: International Arms Networks that Enable Human Rights Violations in Myanmaris the most detailed study of post-coup arms transfers to the military to date. Accompanied by a detailed infographic, it identifies the key networks and companies involved in these transactions, the known values ​​of the transfers, and the jurisdictions in which the networks operate namely Russia, China, Singapore, Thailand and India.

The main suppliers of weapon systems. “Russia and China continue to be major suppliers of advanced weapons systems to the Burmese military, totaling more than $400 million and $260 million respectively since the coup, with much of the trade coming from state-owned entities . However, arms dealers operating out of Singapore are critical to the continued functioning of the Burma Army’s deadly Arms Factories (commonly referred to as KaPaSa),” Andrews said.

What the report reveals. The report reveals that $254 million worth of supplies were shipped from dozens of entities in Singapore to the Myanmar Army from February 2021 to December 2022. Singapore’s banks have been used extensively by arms dealers. Andrews recalled that the Singaporean government has declared that its policy is to “prohibit the transfer of arms to Myanmar” and that it has decided “not to authorize the transfer of dual-use items that have been assessed to have a potential application military in Myanmar”. Burma”. “I call on Singapore’s leaders to seize the information contained in this report and implement its policies to the fullest extent possible,” said the special rapporteur. “If the Singaporean government were to stop all shipments and facilitation of arms and associated materials to the Myanmar Army from its jurisdiction, the impact on the junta’s ability to commit war crimes would be greatly disrupted,” he said.

The involvement also of Thailand. The report also documents $28 million in arms transfers from Thailand-based entities to the Myanmar military since the coup. India-based entities have supplied $51 million worth of weapons and military-related materials since February 2021. Report examines why international sanctions on arms trafficking networks have failed to stop or slow the flow of weapons to the Burmese army. “Myanmar’s army and its arms dealers have figured out how to cheat the system. This is because the sanctions are not enforced properly and because the junta-linked arms dealers have been able to set up shell companies to avoid them.

The main sources of foreign currency. The report also focuses on the major sources of foreign exchange that have enabled the Burmese junta to purchase more than $1 billion worth of weapons since the coup. “Member states have not adequately targeted key sources of foreign exchange that the junta relies on for arms purchases, including the more significant Myanma Oil and Gas Enterprise,” Andrews said. Andrews stressed that no member state has imposed sanctions on the Myanmar Foreign Trade Bank (MFTB) since the coup. “My findings show that MFTB is not only important for receiving foreign currency, but also used extensively by the junta to purchase weapons. It should be a prime target for international sanctions,” the expert said.

Mr. Thomas Andrews (USA) is the Special Rapporteur on the human rights situation in Myanmar. A former US Congressman from Maine,