The U.S. Senate passes the bipartisan amendment in the National Defense Authorization Act to support democracy in Myanmar

Provisions such as "requiring senior Biden Administration officials to present to Congress within sixty days a strategy to impose costs on the military government, legitimizing representative organizations such as the National Unity Government, restoring democratic governance, and fostering national reconciliation were included in the amendment."

“To address the crisis (in Myanmar), I led a bipartisan effort to reaffirm American support for democracy in Burma through the NDAA process. I’m proud of my amendment was included in the final NDAA bill that passed the Senate earlier today,” says Senate Minority Leader McConnell.

The Republican leader adds that in order to restore Myanmar’s democratic development, the United States needs to keep meaningful pressure on the military government and secure international recognition of the democratically-elected government.

The amendment will also require senior officials from the State Department, USAID, Treasury Department, and Defense Department to brief Congress on specific U.S. policy and security objectives in Myanmar.

These objectives involve: assessment of current sanctions on Myanmar, assessing the need for additional sanctions, efforts to support the democratic actors in Myanmar, objectives such as restoration of democracy and establishment of representative civilian government, accountability for human rights violations in Myanmar, and a review of China and Russia’s strategic interests in Myanmar.