Putin Welcomes Myanmar Junta Chief for Talks in Moscow

Russian President Vladimir Putin received Myanmar's military-backed leader, Min Aung Hlaing, in Moscow on Tuesday for talks aimed at expanding bilateral cooperation. The meeting marks the latest step in a relationship that has grown closer despite Myanmar's international isolation.

At the outset of the discussions, Putin highlighted the two countries' collaboration on foreign policy and security matters, as well as joint economic initiatives. The two sides have previously conducted joint military drills and are exploring Russian involvement in building a nuclear power plant, a seaport, and oil refineries in Myanmar.

This visit is Min Aung Hlaing's seventh to Russia. He last met Putin in September on the sidelines of Moscow's World Atomic Week Forum. Putin has never traveled to Myanmar.

The trip is part of a broader diplomatic push by Min Aung Hlaing, who has also visited China, India, Laos, and Thailand in recent months. These efforts aim to shore up international recognition for his government, which has remained largely isolated since the military seized power from Aung San Suu Kyi's elected administration in February 2021.

Western nations have imposed sanctions on Myanmar over the coup and the military's violent crackdown on opposition, which has killed thousands of civilians and sparked a civil war. Russia, however, has defended the junta in international forums and, along with China, remains a major arms supplier. Russian-made fighter jets have been used in attacks on territories controlled by ethnic minority groups, many of whom are allied with pro-democracy resistance forces.

Min Aung Hlaing was inaugurated in April following a general election that United Nations experts and rights groups deemed neither free nor fair. Critics dismissed the phased polls held in December and January as a sham designed to entrench military rule while nominally restoring civilian governance.