The US gave its business community the green light to invest in Myanmar
late on Wednesday night, including the country’s rich oil and gas fields,
though restrictions remain on who they can do business with.
Shortly after April’s
by-elections in Myanmar, also known as Burma, the US announced that it planned
to ease the sanctions in recognition of the country’s dramatic transition from
five decades of military rule to a limited form of democracy.
“Today, we reviewed progress in
Burma, and I announced that the United States is easing sanctions to allow
American businesses to invest there,” US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton
told a press conference at the ASEAN summit in Phnom Penh yesterday.
But any new investment with
Myanmar’s Ministry of Defence, state or non-state armed groups or entities
owned by them and individuals on a government blacklist will still be
prohibited, according to a statement released by the State Department late on
Wednesday.
Firms investing more than
US$500,000 will also be required to provide annual reports detailing
information on, amongst other things, human rights, worker’s rights, land
acquisitions and payments exceeding US$10,000 to Myanmar government entities,
the statement reads.
The European Union had already
lifted sanctions and Catherine Ashton, high representative of foreign affairs
and security policy, praised the US for taking similar action on the sidelines
of the summit yesterday.
“We’ve got teams going in all the
time to offer them support. There’s still more reform to do, but we’re very
pleased.
“I think it’s just fantastic to
see that investment can come into the country. I think it’s good for the
country that they’ll have choices and they’ll see differences.”
Aung San Suu Kyi’s opposition
party welcomed a US decision to ease Myanmar sanctions yesterday, but the
opposition leader demanded more “transparency” as foreign firms hungrily eye
the country’s energy sector.
Myanmar President Thein Sein will
join Clinton, Prime Minister Hun Sen and Thai Prime Minister Yingluck
Shinawatra for a US-ASEAN business forum in Siem Reap today.
David Boyle and Cheang Sokha
Business & Investment Opportunities
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