Russia hopes to develop military-tech cooperation with Myanmar — ambassador

MOSCOW, May 5. /TASS/. Moscow hopes to continue the dialogue between the defense ministries of Russia and Myanmar and to develop military-technical cooperation between the two countries, Russian Ambassador to Yangon Iskander Azizov said in an interview with the Krasnaya Zvezda newspaper.

In April, Myanmar’s new President Min Aung Hlaing officially took office. He had previously resigned as Commander-in-Chief of the Myanmar Armed Forces, a post he had held since 2011. He was succeeded in this position by Ye Win Oo, who previously held the posts of the State Administrative Council secretary and military advisor to the Armed Forces’ Commander-in-Chief. "We expect the current positive trends in military-technical cooperation to strengthen in the context of the new Myanmar leadership’s overall commitment to further developing and strengthening cooperation with Russia. We believe that the dialogue between the military departments will also continue to develop in the spirit of mutual understanding and continuity," the diplomat noted, responding to a question about whether changes in Myanmar’s military leadership would impact relations between the two countries’ militaries.

Azizov emphasized that military-technical cooperation with Myanmar is long-term and multifaceted. "Russia has supplied Myanmar with air defense systems and aircraft, for the repair and maintenance of which we have established a service and maintenance center at the regional level. Myanmar engineers and specialists are involved in its work. In 2018, an agreement was signed on a simplified procedure for the entrance to Russian and Myanmar ports for the two countries’ naval crews. Ships of the Russian Pacific Fleet regularly make friendly visits to the Yangon port of Thilawa. This promotes naval cooperation between our countries," he noted.

The ambassador also recalled that the Russian and Myanmar navies have held the MARUMEX Myanmar-Russia Maritime Security Exercise for three years in a row. "Myanmar military personnel study at Russian universities. A considerable number of Myanmar military personnel are undergoing training in military and scientific-technical fields," Azizov added.