BRI Condemns Thailand–Burma Military Regime Agreement Ignoring Displaced Persons; Urges U.S. to Pressure Thailand
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Ellicott City, Maryland State, USA —The Burma Research Institute (BRI) today condemned the Joint Statement signed in Bangkok by Thailand’s Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul and Myanmar’s military junta leader Min Aung Hlaing on August 6, 2026. The statement makes no reference to durable solutions for refugees or internally displaced persons (IDPs), nor does it address their protection needs. BRI urges the United States to press Thailand over its silence on the displacement, stating that its decision to formally host the 2021 coup leader with full state honors reflects a failure of regional leadership amid an acute humanitarian need.
Thailand hosts over 80,000 refugees from Myanmar in nine temporary shelters managed by the Royal Thai Government (RTG) along the Thai-Myanmar border, as well as approximately 5,000 urban refugees and asylum-seekers, according to UNHCR.
UN Special Envoy of the Secretary-General on Myanmar Julie Bishop briefed the General Assembly on June 19, 2026, on Myanmar’s worsening conditions, citing more than 3.7 million people internally displaced and a further 1.6 million displaced across the region.
“Thailand has every right to manage its own foreign policy,” said BRI President and CEO Zo Tum Hmung. “But it cannot ignore the refugee outflow crisis, which threatens regional peace and security consistent with UN Charter Chapter VII precedents — including Resolution 688 (1991, Iraq) and Resolution 940 (1994, Haiti), both of which treated mass refugee outflows themselves as a threat to international peace and security.”
BRI’s report, released in January 2026, found that refugees have fled to Thailand to escape the military’s atrocities against civilians, including ethnic Karen and Karenni Christian communities. The report documented 343 churches damaged or destroyed and 149 Christians killed since the 2021 coup. BRI and others have urged the Trump administration to determine that the military’s atrocities against civilians, including Christians, constitute crimes against humanity and war crimes.
“President Trump should call Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul directly to place refugee and IDP protection on the bilateral and regional agenda with the Burmese military regime,” BRI President Zo Tum Hmung further said.
The Burma Research Institute (BRI), is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based in Ellicott City, Maryland, in the United States. It conducts research and advocacy primarily focused on freedom of religion or belief in Burma, and advocates for human rights and protection and assistance for refugees and internally displaced persons from Burma. BRI also empowers the local Chin community in Maryland and across the United States to successfully integrate into American society. (www.burmari.org).