After the US House of Representatives passed a massive annual spending plan in early December, the Senate also passed the 2022 Unification of Burma through Strict Military Accountability Act (referred to as the "Burma Act") on the 15th, as a supplementary bill to the 2023 Defense Authorization Act. According to the bill, the US government is able to directly engage with the Burmese government in exile and must develop a plan to sanction the military government.
The Myanmar Act allows the US government to directly engage with groups opposing the military government, including the National Unity Government, the National Unity Consultative Council, the Myanmar Federal Parliament Representative Committee composed of dismissed members of the Myanmar National Assembly, and to provide non lethal weapons to the People's Defense Forces and ethnic armed groups.
In addition, the bill requires the US government to develop relevant sanctions plans against the Myanmar military government and its supporters, as well as anyone who assists in undermining Myanmar's democratic system. On December 8, 2022, Gregory Meeks, the outgoing chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee and the prototype of the "Myanmar Bill" proposed in April 2022, stated that the "Myanmar Bill" is a significant victory for the Burmese people fighting for democracy and a crucial step in holding the Burmese military accountable. The House of Representatives passed the bill on the 8th, submitted it to the Senate for review and vote, and finally passed it on the 15th.
