WASHINGTON

The US on Friday announced new sanctions against Myanmar, targeting aviation fuel suppliers of the military junta which seized power in 2021.

The US Department of the Treasury issued a sanctions alert on Burma jet fuel "to inform individuals, businesses, and other persons of the sanctions risks associated with the provision of jet fuel to Burma’s military regime."

It also designated two individuals and six entities that are connected to Myanmar's military, said the statement.

"These actions come as the military regime prepares to mark the 78th Armed Forces Day," it added.

The treasury department accused the Myanmar military of committing "atrocities and violence against the people of Burma, with an increasing reliance on air strikes with unguided munitions and rockets in civilian populated areas."

"These attacks include air strikes in late 2022 on the village of Let Yet Kone in central Burma that impacted a school with children and teachers present, as well as an air strike in the northern state of Kachin that killed as many as 80 people who were attending a musical concert," it added.

"The actions we are taking today further align with those taken by Canada, the European Union, and the United Kingdom. The United States is committed to supporting the people of Burma and will continue to take actions to deny the regime the resources it uses to commit these atrocities," the State Department said in a separate statement.