Myanmar's Min Aung Hlaing heads to Russia for official visit

Aug 17: Myanmar junta chief-turned-president Min Aung Hlaing left for Russia on Monday for his first official visit to the country since he assumed the presidency in April, according to state media.

Russia will be the fifth country Min Aung Hlaing has visited since becoming president, with official trips to India, China, Laos, and earlier this month, Thailand.

The former general is the subject of a raft of Western sanctions and has been on a quest for international legitimacy since winning a vote in parliament to become president, which came after an election dominated by an army-backed party in the absence of a viable opposition.

Min Aung Hlaing made four visits to Russia as junta chief, the first in June 2021 to attend a security conference, five months after seizing power in a coup. He visited twice in 2022 and again in March 2025 when he held formal talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow.�" REUTERS