Australian actress Cate Blanchett says she is bewildered by Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi's silence over the atrocities being committed against Rohingya Muslims.

More than 670,000 Rohingya refugees from Myanmar have sought safety across the border in Bangladesh since August 2017, after a military campaign against the minority group that a UN official has previously called genocide.

Oscar-winning actress Blanchett visited some of the displaced Muslims from Myanmar last week in her capacity as a UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador. The Australian star warns that thousands of refugees are at risk of disease and starvation as the monsoon season approaches. The Rohingya are not recognized as citizens by Myanmar and have lived under a segregated ethnic system in the country's western Rakhine state for decades.

Blanchett is criticizing Myanmar State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi, the country's de facto leader, for not speaking out over the crisis.