Reuters Reports the Trump Administration Has Opened Direct Talks With Myanmar's Military Rulers — a State Department Official Met Min Aung Hlaing in Naypyitaw — and Gregory Meeks Says Rubio Is "Providing This Murderous Regime Greater International Legitimacy," While State Says "You Don't Solve Problems by Ignoring Them"
On Oct. 8, 2026, Reuters reported that the Trump administration had opened direct talks with Myanmar's military-installed government, ending years of US efforts to isolate the generals who seized power in the 2021 coup. According to the report, Michael Vance, the assistant secretary of state for intelligence and research, met Min Aung Hlaing in the capital, Naypyitaw, on Sept. 15-16. Min Aung Hlaing led the coup, became president after elections that rights groups called a sham, and remains under US sanctions over the 2016-2017 killings and expulsions of Rohingya Muslims, which Washington has declared a genocide. The talks grew out of back-channel negotiations that secured the release of detained American businessman Adam Castillo. Reuters reported they have since widened to cyber-scam centers targeting Americans and possible access to Myanmar's rare-earth deposits. Treasury, Homeland Security and Pentagon officials had joined an earlier meeting in Tokyo in June. Rep. Gregory Meeks, the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said the shift was "contrary to both our values and our interests." He accused Secretary of State Marco Rubio of giving the regime legitimacy while failing to carry out sanctions and democracy funding that Congress had mandated. State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott defended the engagement. Less than two weeks after the Naypyitaw meeting, UN officials said a military airstrike on a crowded market in Rakhine state killed more than 50 people. No agreements have been announced.
“[Statement to Reuters, calling the shift] contrary to both our values and our interests[:] … By engaging Min Aung Hlaing while failing to implement congressionally mandated sanctions and deploy appropriated democracy funding, Secretary [Marco] Rubio is ceding U.S. leadership and providing this murderous regime greater international legitimacy.”