Weiss is formerly chairman of American Premier Inc., a mining and chemicals company and a former fellow at the Harvard Center for International Affairs.

General Electric Sales Plan ‘Doesn’t Break US Law’

US firm General Electric’s plans to sell medical equipment in Burma will not contravene American Congress sanctions, according to an expert in international law.

The sale of US goods is not specifically banned under the terms of the economic sanctions, which only prohibit US firms from making new capital investment in Burma.

GE Healthcare is reportedly planning to sell products via a local Burmese firm, Sea lion Company, according to Reuters news agency this week.

“The sanctions were always aimed at new business, but just selling a product is not specifically barred,” said a legal expert in Bangkok who spoke on condition of anonymity.

“It was the moral pressure and acquiring a bad name which has kept so many Western businesses out of Burma.