Recent Articles/Reports You Should Not Miss

Institute for Strategy and Policy – Myanmar (ISP)’s ISP Explainer No.5 “SAC’s Election Plan and China Pays Special Attention” (August 11, 2023)

RFA | “Uncertainty looms over junta’s plans to hold elections in Myanmar.” (August 17, 2023)

BNN | “Myanmar’s Election Plans Amidst Prolonged Crisis: A Deep Dive” (August 18, 2023)

India’s Increasing Engagement with the Myanmar Junta

Foreign Policy (FP) reported in an article dated July 19 that, “Indian External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar met his counterpart from Myanmar’s military-led government, Than Swe, on the sidelines of a regional conference in Bangkok (Date of the meeting is July 16, 2023). The meeting followed a two-day visit to Myanmar this month by Indian Defense Secretary Giridhar Aramane.” (Source HERE)

Myanmar's sanctioned minister for immigration and population, U Myint Kyaing, visited Delhi and Bengaluru in India on July 24 to learn about the Aadhaar Unique Identity system. He had been sanctioned by the US, EU, and other nations due to his involvement in Myanmar's junta and its repressive policies, including restrictions on citizens' movement and mistreatment of Rohingya minorities. The EU had recently included him in sanctions for supporting the coup and undermining democracy. During his visit, Myint Kyaing was briefed on India's Aadhaar system at the UIDAI Technology Centre in Bengaluru and visited the International Institute of Information Technology (IIIT) in the city. He also visited the regional office of the Aadhaar Centre in New Delhi. The purpose of his visit and whether he met Indian officials remains unclear. Over the past three years, India has been increasingly engaging with Myanmar's regime in Nay Pyi Taw despite the international sanctions. (Source and details of India’s increasing engagement with the Myanmar junta HERE)

Angshuman Choudhury, a senior fellow at Centre for Policy Research (CPR) India, stated the potential implications of the visit in this captivating Twitter thread. 

These interactions between India and Myanmar followed the meeting between Vinya Kumar, India’s ambassador to Myanmar and the junta-appointed Union Election Commission (UEC) head U Thein Soe back in April to discuss the military regime’s planned new election, according to junta-controlled media. (Source HERE)

Very recently, the junta-appointed UEC demonstrated the use of Myanmar Electronic Voting Machine (MEVM) and held a trial voting in Naypyidaw on August 14. We gathered the following responses to the announcement from the international experts on Twitter. (Note that the Tweets/opinions of the individuals are their own and do not represent one's organization)