Key facts
- The strategy sets a goal of a ceasefire presenting a pathway to a lasting peace agreement by 2030.
- It calls for at least three multistakeholder forums producing agreements or policy proposals on fiscal federalism and territorial demarcation.
- The document says those steps would create opportunities to access Myanmar's rare earth resources and combat scam centers.
- The embassy aims to secure at least three major commercial or investment deals valued above $5 million each for US companies.
- The strategy does not spell out whether the US intends to lift sanctions or address compliance concerns that deter investment.
- The State Department did not respond to a request for comment on the document.
The State Department's integrated country strategy for its mission in Myanmar, previously known as Burma, links peace diplomacy to access to the country's rare-earth deposits, according to the document. The strategy says it was approved on August 31 and was posted on the department's website more recently. The State Department did not respond to a request for comment on the document.
The document says the US mission will work toward a ceasefire that presents a pathway to a lasting peace agreement by 2030. It says that work includes facilitating at least three multistakeholder forums that produce concrete agreements or policy proposals advancing fiscal federalism and territorial demarcation in Burma, which it says will create opportunities to access Burma's bountiful rare earth resources and combat scam centers.
Reuters reported last month that US officials have quietly held talks with Myanmar's nominally civilian government, run by the former general who led a 2021 coup. The re-engagement, involving the State Department's top intelligence official Michael Vance, marks a departure from years of US policy aimed at isolating the military, Reuters reported. The talks have included discussions of how to gain access to rare-earth minerals mainly located in conflict-affected areas and currently exported to China, Reuters reported.
The strategy is unusually explicit about how Washington envisions US companies gaining a foothold in the country through involvement in negotiations involving the country's myriad armed groups, which include pro-democracy groups and ethnic insurgents who have in some cases fought the military for decades seeking autonomy. It does not spell out whether the US intends to lift sanctions or address other compliance concerns that deter investment in Myanmar.
The US maintains financial sanctions on coup leader-turned-president Min Aung Hlaing, others in the military-backed government and businesses connected to them, while stressing it wants to see legitimate, responsible business in the country. The Trump administration has removed several Myanmar nationals and companies from its sanctions list.
The strategy says the mission will work to increase US exports to reduce Washington's trade deficit with the impoverished nation. To that end, the embassy aims to secure at least three major commercial or investment deals valued above $5 million each for US companies. The document also prioritizes law enforcement cooperation to combat online scam centers that target Americans and expanded cooperation with authorities to repatriate Myanmar nationals from the United States.