World

US Removes Sanctions on Daughter of Myanmar Businessman Linked to Military

By Al Jazeera Staff

The United States has removed sanctions on Theint Win Htet, the daughter of a Myanmar businessman accused of supporting the military‑installed government. The Treasury Department delisted her on Friday after she sued the agency in July. The decision came after reports that the Trump administration had reopened talks with Myanmar’s government, a shift from years of sanctions against the generals responsible for the 2021 coup. In January 2024, the Treasury targeted the Shwe Byain Phyu Group of Companies, founded by Theint Win Htet’s father, Thein Win Zaw, and his family. The company was said to supply fuel to the military and own at least 20 firms closely tied to military leadership. Theint Win Htet had previously requested removal in a lawsuit against the Biden administration, which was dismissed last year. She filed a second complaint in July, arguing she had no role in her father’s business. The sanctions had blocked her U.S. credit cards, restricted her foreign bank accounts, and forced her to abandon a master’s degree at Columbia University. She now lives in Thailand with her mother, who was removed from the sanctions list last year. Her lawyer, Washington‑based sanctions specialist Erich Ferrari, filed a notice with the federal court in Washington, D.C., to voluntarily dismiss the lawsuit after her delisting. Justice For Myanmar condemned the Treasury’s decision, calling it “deplorable” and accusing the U.S. of continuing to delist Myanmar cronies who fund the junta’s terror. The Biden administration imposed sanctions on military officers and companies after the 2021 coup, which sparked a civil war that has killed about 100,000 people and displaced more than 3.5 million. Washington lifted sanctions in July last year on several other Myanmar nationals and a company accused of aiding the military.