It is observed that a closed consultation on Myanmarwas convened at the United Nations Security Council on 23 August 2023 and after the consultation, Britain read out the Joint Statement of 13 council members (Albania, Brazil, Ecuador, France, Gabon, Ghana, Japan, Malta, Mozambique, Switzerland, the United Arab Emirates, the United States, and the Britain).
It is further learnt that the consultation was briefed by Mr. Martin Griffiths Under-Secretary-General of the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, who paid a visit to Myanmar from 15 to 17 August and Mr. Khaled Khiari, Assistant Secretary-General of the Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs.
The said Joint Statement issued by 13 council members includes intrusive and fraudulent elements. In fact, over 6,300 innocent civilians lost their lives due to the inhumane attacks by the terrorist groups in Myanmar. The Government of Myanmar has been taking necessary security measures with utmost restraint to protect the lives and properties of its people. The statement issued by certain members of the Security Council is obviously found to be biased as it blatantly ignored those terrorist activities. Myanmar has released over 76,000 prisoners with more than 20 pardon orders, facilitated the registration of over 30 political parties, and convened peace talks 119 times to date. On the matter of repatriation of over 500,000 displaced persons from Rakhine State, Myanmar has been upholding the bedrock of bilateral agreements between Myanmar and Bangladesh made in 2017 and 2018 respectively.
Myanmar government has been cooperating with international community including the United Nations regarding the provision of humanitarian assistance. International organizations maintain their branch offices in states and regions and travel authorizations have been permitted to the relevant agencies including the diplomats from Britain and Switzerland. In connection with the number of people who need humanitarian assistance, it is also blended with those who are in need of development assistance. Accordingly, the number and data are excessively exaggerated and unreflective of the actual ground situations. Myanmar facilitated the visit of Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator with the aim to provide assistance for the people in need through pragmatic cooperation with the United Nations.
The situation of Myanmar is only internal affairs which does not pose any threat to the regional and international peace and security. The UNSC Resolution 2669 is largely politicized. As the matters of humanitarian assistance and human rights are under the mandate of other UN bodies, it is irrelevant to discuss those matters at the Security Council. Myanmar reiterates its stance to uphold the 2008 Constitution, existing laws and fundamental principles as the only norms in carrying out the state affairs.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
24 August, 2023.