Burmese junta leader-turned-president visits India, with an eye on China

BANGKOK – Less than two months after making a carefully designed transition from The head of the Burmese junta will become presidentMr. Min Aung Hlaing to fly to India on official visit in May 30his first visit abroad since taking up civilian duties.

This five-day trip, during which the former general will meet with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, highlights the gradual return of regional reengagement for Myanmar, five years after that of several of its neighbors. shunned the Southeast Asian nation’s military leadership following a coup d’état.

For India, the visit is an opportunity to dilute China’s outsized influence over Myanmar while working to secure access to the country’s critical rare earth deposits and strengthen security along its northeastern borders, analysts say.

“After donning civilian clothes as president, Mr. Min Aung Hlaing is seeking to strengthen diplomatic engagement in the region,” said Mr. Richard Horsey, senior Myanmar advisor at Crisis Group.

“He expects more normal relations with ASEAN,” Horsey added, referring to the grouping of 11 Southeast Asian countries, “with support from Thailand and some other member states. He is also likely to travel to Beijing soon to meet Xi Jinping. India is Myanmar’s other key neighbor.”

An official from Myanmar’s presidential office, reached by telephone, declined to comment on the visit.

Indian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal told reporters in May 29: “All issues that are part of the spectrum of relations between Myanmar and India will be discussed.”

At dawn on February 1, 2021, Mr. Min Aung Hlaing overthrew the elected civilian government led by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, sparking a protest movement that transformed into a nationwide armed uprising against the military.

The coup drew widespread condemnation, including from the ASEAN bloc which banned Myanmar’s generals from attending its summits, and the new military-led administration found itself increasingly isolated.

A devastating earthquake in 2025 was a diplomatic opening for Mr. Min Aung Hlaing, who made a rare visit to a regional summit in Bangkok, which he seeks to build on after a widely criticized election that paved the way for his presidency.

“He is increasingly seeking regional and international respectability after the elections,” said Mr. Gautam Mukhopadhaya, former Indian ambassador to Myanmar.

Although long supported by Beijing, which has many investments in Myanmar, Mr. Min Aung Hlaing’s decision to travel to India for his first foreign visit would be partly aimed at countering China’s deep influence, analysts say.

“This is part of Myanmar’s way of dealing with India and China, capitulating more to China and trying to sort of find a balance with India,” Mr. Mukhopadhaya said.

The visit comes as Myanmar’s military has launched new offensives in a border area where there are rare earth deposits as well as other vital trade routes to India and Thailand.

“Min Aung Hlaing will almost certainly seek India’s help to counter the Arakan Army and Chin armed groups,” Mr. Horsey said, referring to rebels fighting the army in Myanmar’s Chin state, which borders India, and neighboring Rakhine state.

India, for its part, wants to find a way to access Myanmar’s resources, including working to obtain mineral samples with the help of a powerful rebel group, Reuters reported.

“The main thing about this visit to the Indian side is what they can get out of it in terms of raw materials, rare earths (and) business propositions,” Mr Mukhopadhaya said.

“And that’s exactly what the Myanmar military wants, because they want their military companies to be strengthened.” REUTERS