Myanmar needs American engagement

A realistic, strategic recalibration is required.

By Dave Brat

FOR nearly two decades, Washington’s policy stance towards Myanmar has oscillated between moral outrage and strategic neglect. No one denies that Myanmar’s past includes human rights abuses, but the question is: How long will we let that dictate US foreign policy instead of thinking strategically about the future?

As an economist and a former member of Congress, I have spent my career examining economic ethics, weighing moral claims against competing interests. I believe America’s sanctions-obsessed approach to Myanmar has only weakened our country’s position in one of Asia’s most consequential geopolitical crossroads.

President Trump, however, has signalled a possible shift in that policy stance. First of all, diplomatic engagement with Myanmar is not an endorsement of the country’s government; it is merely an investment in American Influence, regional stability and long-term economic security. Furthermore, there is no counterproposal that will leave the US and Myanmar better off.

Recently, Myanmar’s multiphase national elections, monitored by international observers and accompanied by prisoner releases, have prompted cautious openness from the Trump administration. Mr Trump has deliberately avoided the sanctimonious megaphone diplomacy that characterized earlier US policy, choosing instead to preserve the possibility of dealmaking. That restraint matters, as diplomacy requires open doors and levelheadedness.

Critics argue that US engagement in Myanmar legitimizes a flawed political process. I disagree. As economists understand, incentives shape outcomes. Total disengagement through sweeping sanctions and public condemnation has not improved governance in Myanmar. It has, however, created a power vacuum that has been eagerly filled by America’s adversaries.

China already operates a major oil and gas pipeline from Myanmar’s coast to Yunnan Province, locking in strategic energy access and political influence. Russia, eager to expand its footprint in South-East Asia, stands ready to deepen military and economic ties wherever the United States retreats. If America is serious about strengthening our geopolitical position, we cannot afford a policy of absence. The status quo is not working.

There is also a hard-headed economic case for engagement. Myanmar sits atop significant reserves of oil, natural gas and rare earth minerals. These resources are indispensable to modern energy systems, advanced manufacturing and national defence. The global scramble for critical minerals is intensifying, and dependence on single-country supply chains has proved strategically reckless.

Investing in energy and critical mineral opportunities in Myanmar would diversify supply chains while giving the United States economic stakes that translate into diplomatic influence. America’s broader Indo-Pacific strategy depends on credible engagement with South-East Asia, including through forums such as the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. Quiet diplomacy at regional summits, confidence-building measures along borders and economic reentry all signal that the United States intends to remain a serious player.

Many US companies exited Myanmar after the 2021 sanctions regime was put into place by a Biden executive order, surrendering ground to state-backed Chinese firms. With those measures set to expire early this year unless renewed, Washington faces a choice: either double down on a strategy that has ceded US influence or recalibrate towards a strategic engagement that advances US interests.

The US Treasury’s recent decision to remove certain Burmese individuals from sanctions lists, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s positive reference to Myanmar’s elections and Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s instructions to State Department officials to avoid prejudging electoral legitimacy overseas all suggest that a more nuanced approach is possible.

Senator Mitch McConnell, meanwhile, preferring the old US strategy of disengaging and handing wins to our adversaries, has dismissed Myanmar’s elections outright.

The United States should push for peace, humanitarian aid and political inclusion in the countries where we are engaged diplomatically. Those goals, however, can be achieved only from a seat at the table. The president’s playbook is very clear in the 2025 National Security Strategy document: “Flexible Realism - US policy will be realistic about what is possible and desirable to seek in its dealings with other nations. We seek good relations and peaceful commercial relations with the nations of the world without imposing on them democratic or other social change that differs widely from their traditions and histories. We recognize and affirm that there is nothing inconsistent or hypocritical in acting according to such a realistic assessment or in maintaining good relations with countries whose governing systems and societies differ from ours, even as we push like-minded friends to uphold our shared norms, furthering our interests as we do so.”

Strategic engagement with Myanmar offers the United States a chance to strengthen our position against our adversaries, secure critical resources and promote stability in a geopolitically crucial region of the world. Because walking away at this crucial moment would be strategically unsound, Congress should back President Trump on this strategic recalibration because American interests demand it.

Dave Brat is a PhD economist. He represented Virginia’s 7th Congressional District from 2014 to 2019.

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