WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration is hitting Myanmar’s junta with new sanctions in response to February’s coup. The administration announced Thursday that it’s imposing sanctions on the country’s main, state-owned gem company, Myanmar Gems Enterprise. The penalties freeze any assets the firm holds in the U.S. or in U.S. jurisdictions and bar American citizens from doing business with it. The company is a major exporter of gems and semi-precious stones like jade, which bring in significant amounts of revenue to government coffers. The U.S. and other Western nations have been steadily ramping up sanctions pressure on Myanmar, also known as Burma, since the coup and subsequent deadly crackdown on pro-democracy protesters.
