President Joe Biden delivers remarks on health care, in the Oval Office of the White House, Thursday, Jan. 28, 2021, in Washington.
(AP Photo/Evan Vucci)WASHINGTON – President Joe Biden on Monday threatened new sanctions on Myanmar after its military staged a coup and arrested the civilian leaders of its government, including Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi.
Biden assailed the country's army for the coup, calling it a “direct assault on the country’s transition to democracy and rule of law.” The coup in Myanmar, also known as Burma, has also been roundly condemned internationally.
“The United States removed sanctions on Burma over the past decade based on progress toward democracy,” Biden said in a statement.
She had lived under house arrest for years as she tried to push her country toward democracy and then became its de facto leader after her National League for Democracy won elections in 2015.