Trump ally Roger Stone condemned for lobbying for Myanmar junta

Roger Stone, a longtime ally of former U.S. President Donald Trump, has been condemned for accepting $50,000 a month to lobby on behalf of Myanmar’s military-led government, according to documents filed under the U.S. Foreign Agents Registration Act.

Myanmar’s leaders have faced international isolation since seizing power in a coup in 2021 and have been repeatedly accused of atrocities that may amount to war crimes. Activists say the military rulers, who recently held widely condemned “sham” elections, are now seeking to reassert their influence abroad.

Stone is described in the filings as providing “public affairs services” to Myanmar’s Ministry of Information. The services aim at “rebuilding relations between the Republic of the Union of Myanmar and the United States, with a focus on trade, natural resources, and humanitarian relief,” the documents state.

Stone is listed as a consultant for the DCI Group, a public affairs firm.

Stone, 73, is a veteran political strategist and confidant of Trump. In 2019, he was convicted of obstructing a congressional investigation into whether the Trump campaign colluded with Russia to win the 2016 election. He received a 40-month sentence but never served time, having been granted clemency by Trump in 2020.

Justice for Myanmar, a civil society group, accused DCI Group and Stone of profiting “from a heavily sanctioned junta that is committing war crimes and crimes against humanity with total impunity.”

DCI Group and Roger Stone were contacted for comment but did not respond.

The United States has imposed sanctions on individuals and businesses linked to Myanmar’s military in response to both the alleged genocide against the Rohingya Muslim minority—now before the International Court of Justice—and the 2021 coup.

The coup ousted the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi and plunged the country into economic turmoil and a spiraling civil war. U.N. experts and rights groups have accused the military of repeated atrocities against civilians as it tries to suppress opposition movements.

The Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar, a U.N. body, warned in 2024 of “substantial evidence” that war crimes and crimes against humanity have been committed by the military since the coup.

The military has defended its operations, saying they target terrorists intent on destabilizing the country.

Myanmar’s military rulers held staggered elections earlier this year, presenting them as a return to normalcy, but the vote was widely condemned as a one-sided sham. General Min Aung Hlaing, who led the 2021 coup, was appointed president last month.

Conflict has continued across Myanmar. In March, more than 450 people were killed in air and drone strikes—the highest monthly death toll since resistance to the coup began, according to Acled, a conflict-monitoring group.

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