Myanmar junta using new Russian, Chinese arms against civilians, UN expert says
- The report said Russia had supplied drones, two types of fighter jets, and two kinds of armoured vehicles, and China had transferred fighter jets
- The report also named Serbia as one of three countries supplying arms to the Myanmar, which the country denied
Thomas Andrews, a former US congressman serving in the independent post, released a report that also named Serbia as one of three countries supplying arms to the Myanmar junta since it seized power last year, with “full knowledge that they would be used to attack civilians”.
“It should be incontrovertible that weapons used to kill civilians should no longer be transferred to Myanmar,” Andrews said in a statement.
Chaos has gripped Myanmar since a coup ended a decade of tentative democracy, triggering protests that troops suppressed with lethal force.
At least 1,500 civilians have been killed, according to activists cited by the UN, which also says more than 300,000 people have been displaced by rural conflict between the and armed opponents.
The junta says it is fighting “terrorists” and objects to what it calls UN interference.
Myanmar’s and Russia’s foreign ministry could not immediately be reached for comment on the report.
