An Israeli-Canadian lobbyist hired by Myanmar junta will be paid $ 2 million to “help explain the real situation” of the military coup to the United States and other countries, documents filed by the Department of U.S. justice shows.
More than 60 protesters have been killed and 1,900 people arrested since Feb. 1, when Myanmar’s elders seized power and arrested civilian leaders including State Councilor Aung San Suu Kyi.
Ari Ben-Menashe and his company, Dickens & Madson Canada, represent the Myanmar military government in Washington, as well as lobbying Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Israel and Russia, and international organizations such as the United Nations , subject to advisory agreement.
Iran-born Ben-Menashe was arrested in the U.S. in the 1980s after attempting to sell U.S.-made weapons to Iran. He said he was a Mossad agent and an adviser to then-Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir, claims that were rejected by Israel.
The Montreal-based company will help “design and implement policies for the beneficial development of the Republic of Myanmar Union, and also to help define the real situation of the country,” read the agreement, which was submitted Monday to the Department of Justice as part of compliance with the U.S. Foreign Agents Registration Act and published online.
Criticism for Myanmar’s military government did not respond to phone calls from Reuters seeking comment.