As part of his six-nation trip to Asia, US secretary of state Rex Tillerson will visit Myanmar on November 15. In fact, until recently, the Trump administration had shown a lukewarm interest toward South-east Asia, particularly Myanmar. Tillerson’s visit comes at a time when the Trump administration is considering declaring a crackdown on Rohingya Muslims as ‘ethnic cleansing’. The Trump administration is also under pressure from members of the US Congress who have called for the re-imposition of sanctions against the Myanmar military. If implemented, the targeted sanctions would include travel curbs on Myanmar military officials and prevent Washington from supplying assistance to the Myanmar military until perpetrators of atrocities against the Rohingyas are held accountable.

Source: Hindustan Times November 07, 2017 10:18 UTC