US Plans Myanmar Engagement for Peace, Rare Earths

A recently published State Department strategy signals a shift toward renewed U.S. engagement with Myanmar’s military-backed government, after years of sanctions and efforts to isolate the military following the 2021 coup. Washington says it will support talks among the country’s armed factions and work toward a ceasefire and lasting peace agreement by 2030, while the strategy also links negotiations to opportunities for U.S. companies to access Myanmar’s rare-earth deposits, much of whose output now goes to China. The outreach comes amid a civil war that the United Nations says has killed about 100,000 people and displaced more than 3.5 million. The strategy also calls for expanding U.S. trade and economic influence, though it does not specify whether sanctions will be lifted or how investment obstacles will be addressed.