United Nations wants to ‘make sure’ Myanmar coup fails, says secretary general

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said the world body would ‘do everything we can’ to put international pressure on Myanmar’s military

Negotiations are continuing between the 15 Security Council members on a statement to be issued in response to the coup

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United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres pictured at the UN headquarters in New York last month. Photo: Handout via Xinhua

Published: 9:35am, 4 Feb 2021Updated: 7:54pm, 4 Feb 2021

United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres has pledged to mobilise enough international pressure on Myanmar’s military “to make sure that this coup fails” as the UN Security Council tries to negotiate a statement on the crisis.

Myanmar plunged back into direct military rule on Monday when soldiers detained de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi and other civilian leaders in a series of dawn raids – citing “election fraud” – ending the country’s brief experiment with democracy.

“We will do everything we can to mobilise all the key actors and international community to put enough pressure on Myanmar to make sure that this coup fails,” Guterres said in a conversation on Wednesday with The Washington Post. “After elections that I believe took place normally and after a large period of transition, it’s absolutely unacceptable to reverse the results of the elections and the will of the people.”

The military takeover and imposition of a one-year state of emergency drew condemnation from the United States and other Western countries.

A motorcyclist rides past soldiers in an armoured vehicle in Myanmar on Wednesday. Photo: AFP

An initial draft statement put forward by Britain for discussion among the 15-member Security Council condemned the coup, and called for the military to respect the rule of law and human rights and immediately release those detained.

However, such statements have to be agreed by consensus and diplomats said the language would likely need to be softened to win the support of China and Russia, who have traditionally shielded Myanmar in the Security Council.