Isolated from the West, Myanmar Looks for Friendship in Russia

Lauren Ho

In 2021, the Myanmar military, or junta, overthrew its elected government and has
since maintained power. The junta stated its intention to turn over governing power, but has
yet to fulfill its promise. Its head of military, General Min Aung Hlaing, has extended Myanmar’s
state of emergency seven times to maintain power. The most recent renewal of the state of
emergency occurred in late January of 2025 under the pretense of strengthening the country
for elections. Although having received push back about the power grab, many regimes remain
in support of Myanmar’s junta.

General Hlaing met this past week with Moscow and signed cooperation agreements for
Russia to build nuclear power plants in Myanmar. Since the junta’s initial seizure of power, the
West has imposed economic and political sanctions on Myanmar. Due to the restrictions placed
on them, General Min Aung Hlaing has sought to extend its cooperation with the Russian
government. Moscow has reciprocated the cooperation, providing arms to Myanmar.
Furthermore, Russia has defended Myanmar’s junta and even held joint military drills. It is
expected that Myanmar’s military government will continue to seek assistance from, and an alliance with,Russia.