SINGAPORE (AFP) — Myanmar's neighbours have little influence over internal developments there, Singapore's foreign minister said in remarks published Tuesday.
George Yeo's comments came in an interview with The Straits Times after the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) last week expressed their "revulsion" at Myanmar's deadly crackdown on anti-government protesters.
Singapore is the current chair of ASEAN.
Experts and diplomats said the unusually sharp words contrasted with the usual gentle diplomacy used towards the military-ruled regime.
"But we have very little leverage over the internal development there. What we have is moral influence as members of the ASEAN family," Yeo told The Straits Times.
"We can't do what the big powers can do in terms of trade embargo or freezing bank accounts."
Some observers have said Myanmar's ruling general would be more vulnerable and likely to listen to democratic voices inside and outside the country without the financial support received through trade with their ASEAN and other Asian neighbours.
According to the International Monetary Fund, China was the number one supplier of imports to Myanmar last year, followed by Thailand and then Singapore.
Thailand was the major recipient of exports from Myanmar, far ahead of second-placed India, then China and Japan, according to the data.
The United States ordered a freeze on the assets of Myanmar's military leader and 13 other senior officials after the junta last Wednesday began its crackdown on anti-government protesters that killed at least 13 people and saw hundreds arrested.
The US and European nations already had tough economic sanctions in place.
US-based Human Rights Watch has called on companies doing business in Myanmar, to "ensure their operations do not contribute to or benefit from human rights abuses" in Myanmar.
"There's a strong opposition across the board in Asia to sanctions," Robert Templer, Asia director of the International Crisis Group of analysts, said earlier when talking about the importance of regional trade in propping up Myanmar's government.
Aung Thu Nyein, a Thai-based Myanmar analyst, said China and Thailand are the major buyers of Myanmar's teak and jade.
"They just want short-term business interests. They don't care about the lives of Burmese people," he said.
In The Straits Times interview, Yeo said that ASEAN does not regard its rebuke of Myanmar as a significant change in policy because the bloc decided about 18 months ago that it was not in a position to defend Myanmar internationally.
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