U.S. Relations With Burma
More information about Burma is available on the Burma Page and from other Department of State publications and other sources listed at the end of this fact sheet.
U.S.-BURMA RELATIONS
The United States supports a peaceful, prosperous, and democratic Burma that respects the human rights of all its people. Elections in November 2010 led to a peaceful transition from sixty years of military rule to a quasi-civilian government headed by President Thein Sein. Under President Thein Sein, the Government of Burma has initiated a series of political and economic reforms which have resulted in a substantial opening of the long-isolated country. These reforms include the release of many political prisoners and child soldiers, the signing of a ceasefire agreement with eight major non-state ethnic groups, greater enjoyment of freedom of expression, including by the press, and parliamentary by-elections in 2012 in which pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi and her opposition party, the National League for Democracy (NLD), won 43 of the 45 contested seats, gaining approximately 11 percent representation in parliament. In historic elections in November 2015, the NLD won a majority of the total seats in the national parliament and in most state and regional parliaments. The United States has welcomed the positive statements from President Thein Sein and from the military leadership pledging to respect the result of the election and congratulating the NLD for its performance. Despite some structural problems, including the reservation of 25 percent of parliamentary seats for the military; the disfranchisement of groups of people who voted in previous elections, including the Rohingya; and the disqualification of candidates based on arbitrary application of citizenship and residency requirements, this election represented an important step forward in Burma’s democratic transition.
The Obama Administration has employed a calibrated engagement strategy to recognize the positive steps undertaken to date and to incentivize further reform. The guiding principles of this approach have been to support Burma’s political and economic reforms; promote national reconciliation; build government transparency, and accountability and institutions; empower local communities and civil society; promote responsible international engagement; and strengthen respect for and protection of human rights and religious freedom.
As part of our calibrated approach to support further reform, the United States has restored full diplomatic relations, re-established a U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Mission in country, supported new grant and lending operations and technical assistance by international financial institutions, and eased economic and investment sanctions against Burma. Senior U.S. government officials, including President Obama, continue to travel to the country to meet with the Burmese government, political parties, civil society, human rights activists, religious and ethnic leaders, and youth, demonstrating the United States’ continuing support to Burma in its democratic reform efforts. The extent to which the government follows through on its commitments to respect the results of the election, peacefully transfer power, reform the constitution, and protect the human rights of members of its diverse population – as well as the success of the next government in continuing broad reforms – will determine the level and type of engagement and support Burma will receive from the United States in the future.
During President Obama’s trip to Burma in November 2012, the first visit of a sitting U.S. President, the Burmese government made 11 specific commitments to strengthen human rights protections, including reforms related to religious freedom, political prisoners, conflict mitigation, ethnic reconciliation, non-proliferation, good governance, and human trafficking. These commitments include forming a committee to review political prisoner cases; pursuing political dialogue with ethnic minorities; meeting humanitarian needs in Rakhine State and other conflict-affected areas; providing for the establishment of a UN High Commissioner for Human Rights office in Burma; and allowing the International Committee of the Red Cross to resume prison visits. In a May 2013 visit to the United States, President Thein Sein and his senior ministers reaffirmed their intention to uphold these commitments, though as of December 2015, many of them remain only partially fulfilled.
While the country has made notable progress, huge challenges remain, including completing the national reconciliation process with various ethnic groups, strengthening respect for and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms, releasing remaining political prisoners, and improving the conditions in Rakhine State, particularly those facing members of the Rohingya population. Additionally, more progress needs to be made to reduce the military’s role in politics, move from ceasefires to political dialogue, and to improve rule of law and government accountability. The United States continues to emphasize to the Burmese government the importance of promoting values of tolerance, diversity, and peaceful co-existence, and for the Burmese military to completely end military ties with North Korea.
In November 2014, President Obama attended the ASEAN Summit in Naypyitaw, Burma and met with President Thein Sein, then-Parliamentary lower house speaker Shwe Mann, and NLD Chair Aung San Suu Kyi. In each of these meetings, the President reiterated the United States’ commitment to stand with the people of Burma during the long road of reform to help the country realize its full potential as a peaceful, just, prosperous and democratic society. President Obama raised concerns about the need to address human rights and humanitarian issues, particularly related to the situation in Rakhine State, which pose serious challenges to Burma’s reform process. The Burmese leadership acknowledged the work that lies ahead and re-affirmed its commitment to work with the United States and international community to continue on the path of democratic reform.
The Administration regularly consults with key stakeholders in Burma, Congress, U.S. allies, and other international actors in appropriate ways to encourage continued reform in the country.
The military government changed the country name to "Myanmar" in 1989. It remains U.S. policy to refer to the country as Burma in most contexts.
U.S. Assistance to Burma
The United States has a long-standing commitment to improving the lives of the people of Burma. After the USAID Mission was closed in 1989, the United States continued to deliver emergency humanitarian assistance along the Thailand-Burma border, including through NGO partners for Burmese refugees and asylum seekers in the refugee camps on the border. The United States resumed targeted health programs in 1998. In 2008, U.S. assistance efforts scaled up in response to the devastation caused by Cyclone Nargis. Burma's ongoing reforms led to the re-establishment of the USAID Mission in 2012.
Carefully integrated with U.S. diplomatic efforts, U.S. development assistance focuses on deepening and sustaining key political and economic reforms, ensuring that the democratic transition benefits everyday people, and mitigating division and conflict. Since 2012, the United States has provided over $500 million to support Burma’s transition, advance the peace process, and improve the lives of millions, including by assisting communities affected by violence and combatting hate speech and communal violence. More than 1.1 million people have improved food security, and over 300,000 impoverished farming families have increased their agricultural productivity with better access to technology, markets and new investments. New entrepreneurs are benefiting from the economic reform process, which has increased access to information and communications technology. Over 20 public-private partnerships with leading U.S. corporations, information and communications technology companies, and foundations work to develop small and medium enterprises, improve healthcare, and bring new technologies to Burma. In preparation for the historic elections in 2015, the United States trained more than 7,300 political party members and partnered with over 300 civil society organizations on voter education and observation, strengthening public participation in Burma’s overall reform process.
In Fiscal Year 2015, the United States provided more than $50 million to address humanitarian needs in Burma, including among internally displaced persons throughout the country and vulnerable Burmese refugees and asylum seekers in the region. In response to the maritime migrant crisis in May and June 2015, the United States provided more than $6 million towards the emergency appeals from the International Organization for Migration and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and helped provide temporary shelter, emergency relief items, and health, nutrition, and psychosocial assistance. During the heavy seasonal rainfall in July and August 2015 and Tropical Cyclone Komen, which caused significant flooding and landslides throughout the country and affected more than 1.6 million people, the United States provided more than $5 million in humanitarian assistance to all affected communities, working with local officials and international relief partners to distribute essential supplies and services to the emergency shelters in the worst-affected areas and assist in early recovery efforts. The United States continues to provide emergency assistance to vulnerable communities along the Thailand-Burma border and in Rakhine, Kachin, and Shan States.
In addition to USAID, many other U.S. agencies provide assistance and training in Burma, including the U.S. Department of State, U.S. Department of Commerce, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, U.S. Department of Energy, U.S. Department of Labor, U.S. Department of Defense, U.S. Department of the Treasury, and U.S. Trade and Development Agency.
Bilateral Economic Relations
In recognition of Burma's political and economic reform progress, the United States has taken concrete steps to accelerate broad-based economic growth and support the political reform process. The United States played an instrumental role in supporting renewed engagement from multilateral development banks, which re-started operations in 2013. Over the past three years, U.S. development partners at the World Bank and Asian Development Bank have committed more than $3.8 billion to critical needs in Burma’s infrastructure and human services. In July 2012, the Administration issued general licenses that, subject to certain limitations, authorize the exportation of U.S. financial services to Burma and authorize new U.S. investment in Burma, thus permitting the first new U.S. investment in Burma in nearly 15 years. In September 2012, the Administration removed President Thein Sein and Speaker Shwe Mann from the Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) list. In October 2012, the Administration took action under H.R. 6431 to allow the U.S. Executive Directors at international financial institutions (IFIs) to vote in favor of the provision of assistance for Burma by the IFI, paving the way for new grant and lending operations. In November 2012, the Administration issued a waiver and general license to ease the ban on the importation of products of Burma into the United States, with the exception of jadeite and rubies mined or extracted from Burma and articles of jewelry containing them, for the first time in almost a decade. The July 28, 2013 expiration of the Burmese Freedom and Democracy Act’s (BFDA) ban on imports from Burma removed the underlying statutory basis for the general import ban. Shortly thereafter, the President issued Executive Order 13651 to remove the general import ban from Executive Order 13310 and to maintain the previously described restrictions associated with jadeite and rubies. In 2013, the Administration issued a general license to authorize U.S. persons to conduct most transactions – including opening and maintaining financial accounts and conducting a range of other financial services – with four of Burma’s major financial institutions: Asia Green Development Bank, Ayeyarwady Bank, Myanmar Economic Bank, and Myanmar Investment and Commercial Bank. In December 2015, the Administration issued a six-month general license to authorize most transactions ordinarily incident to the export of goods, technology, and non-financial services to or from Burma provided that the exportation is not to, from, or on behalf of SDNs or otherwise blocked persons.
The U.S. government encourages responsible investment in Burma as part of an overall strategy to encourage economic growth and improve the standard of living for the people of Burma. The United States plays a leading role by enhancing human capacity and promoting global standards throughout Southeast Asia due to the quality of private investment. U.S. companies will continue to play a critical role in supporting broad-based, sustainable development in Burma and are helping the country progress toward a more open, inclusive, and democratic society.
Burma's Membership in International Organizations
Burma became a member of the United Nations in 1948 following independence from the United Kingdom, and a member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in 1997. Burma was the chair of ASEAN for 2014, its first chairmanship in 17 years as an ASEAN member state.
Burma and the United States belong to a number of the same international organizations, including the UN, International Monetary Fund, World Bank, and World Trade Organization.
Bilateral Representation
The U.S. Ambassador to Burma is Derek J. Mitchell; other principal embassy officials are listed in the Department's Key Officers List.
Burma maintains an embassy in the United States at 2300 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008, tel.: (202) 332-3344; fax: (202) 332-4351.
More information about Burma is available from the Department of State and other sources, some of which are listed here:
Department of State Burma Country Page
Doing Business in Burma page
Department of State Key Officers List
CIA World Factbook Burma Page
USAID Burma Page
Human Rights Reports
International Religious Freedom Reports
Trafficking in Persons Reports
Narcotics Control Reports
Office of Foreign Assets Control Sanctions Page