The US government is stepping up sanctions on Myanmar’s military regime through two state-owned banks, according to the Thai PBS news quoting a diplomatic source.

The Myanmar Foreign Trade Bank and the Myanmar Investment and Commercial Bank will face sanctions commencing 20 June, and the measures are aimed at the financial access of the junta, and reducing its capacity to oppress its own people and wage war inside the country, the report said.

The US administration has already imposed numerous sanctions on Myanmar and key figures, in cooperation with other Western countries.

The new sanctions will block all transactions of these two banks relating to business with the US under the law.

The US and its allies announced a round of sanctions against the Myanmar junta on 31 January ahead of two-year anniversary of the military takeover.

The National Unity Government (NUG) also called on the international community to impose financial sanctions on the state-owned Myanmar Oil and Gas Enterprise to cut off the junta’s major income sources of foreign currency and to reduce the military’s access to aviation fuel used in airstrikes targeting civilians.