A joint staff working document published by the EU Council on 16 July 2026 presents the third Enhanced Engagement report covering 2023-2025 for three Everything But Arms (EBA) beneficiary countries—Bangladesh, Cambodia, and Myanmar—assessing their compliance with human and labour rights. The report notes mixed progress and persistent gaps, with the EU maintaining EBA preferences for Myanmar to avoid harming civilians amid the ongoing crisis.
The Enhanced Engagement process applies only to these three countries. For Bangladesh, the report highlights positive steps such as ratifying the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture (OP-CAT) in 2025, withdrawing a reservation to the Convention against Torture (CAT) as of 3 February 2026, and acceding to the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance (ICPED) in August 2024. However, the Cyber Security Act (2023) threatens freedom of expression, and the ILO Governing Body in March 2026 deferred a decision on the Labour Sector Roadmap until March 2027. The Bangladesh Labour Act was amended in April 2026, but assessment by the Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations (CEACR) is pending.
For Cambodia, key exchanges occurred at the 12th EU–Cambodia Joint Committee on 25 April 2024 and the 13th in March 2026. The opposition Candlelight Party remains barred from national elections (2023). Former opposition leader Kem Sokha was pardoned on 26 May 2026 but faces restrictions. The 1996 Nationality Law, amended in 2025, allows citizenship revocation. GSP preferences were partially withdrawn in 2020 due to human rights concerns.
For Myanmar, since the 2021 military coup, grave violations persist, including airstrikes on civilians and over 16 million people in urgent need. The EU adopted restrictive measures and maintains EBA preferences to avoid adverse effects on civilians, preserving leverage and supporting livelihoods in labour-intensive sectors like garments.
The report concludes that the EU continues Enhanced Engagement with all three countries, noting some progress in Bangladesh and Cambodia but persistent severe rights gaps.