UN calls for reversal of coup, seeks restraint

The U.N. Security Council unanimously called for a reversal of the military coup in Myanmar on Wednesday, strongly condemning the violence against peaceful protesters and calling for “utmost restraint” by the military.

A presidential statement approved by all 15 council members, including Myanmar’s neighbor and friend China, was formally adopted at a very brief virtual meeting where U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the current council president, announced that the statement had been agreed.

A presidential statement is a step below a resolution but becomes part of the official record of the U.N.’s most powerful body.

The British-drafted statement calls for the immediate release of government leaders, including State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi and President Win Myint who have been detained since their ouster in the Feb. 1 military coup.

It supports the country’s democratic transition and “stresses the need to uphold democratic institutions and processes, refrain from violence, fully respect human rights and fundamental freedoms and uphold the rule of law.”

China’s U.N. Ambassador Zhang Jun said in a statement that “it is important the council members speak in one voice,” and declared that it’s now time for de-escalation, diplomacy and dialogue. Thomas-Greenfield also stressed that all council members “spoke with one voice to condemn the ongoing violence against peaceful protesters.”