The head of Myanmar’s military-backed government has arrived in Thailand for an official visit that could serve as a major stepping stone in his effort to win political legitimacy more than five years after seizing power from an elected civilian government.
President Min Aung Hlaing's two-day official visit includes meetings with Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul and other officials at Government House, where several memorandums of understanding were signed covering Myanmar migrant workers, water quality management in rivers shared by the two countries and space technology for Earth observation.
At the meeting with Anutin, Min Aung Hlaing sought to reassure Thailand that his government was restoring stability and steering Myanmar towards democracy.
“Myanmar has now re-established itself on the path to democracy and is moving toward a better future,” Min Aung Hlaing said on Thursday.
“As the new government, we have now begun working on national stability, peace, and national reconciliation.”
The visit has drawn criticism from activist groups such as Justice For Myanmar, which stated that the trip lends “false legitimacy” to Min Aung Hlaing and the ruling generals.
Min Aung Hlaing took a significant step towards would-be political rehabilitation in April when he was sworn in as president following an election held in phases in December and January.
Critics dismissed the polls as a sham designed to consolidate the military’s grip on power while ostensibly restoring civilian rule.
The diplomatic outreach is the latest move to re-engage with countries in the region and the international community after relations became frayed or frosty following Min Aung Hlaing's ousting of Aung San Suu Kyi’s government in February 2021 while serving as army chief.
Western governments have shunned and sanctioned Min Aung Hlaing and his associates for overthrowing Suu Kyi's government.
Subsequent serious rights violations followed a deadly military crackdown on protests, which subsequently triggered a nationwide armed resistance movement and a bloody civil war.
The visit is among Min Aung Hlaing’s most significant diplomatic engagements and the latest in a series of trips to neighbouring countries, including China, India and Laos, as he seeks to strengthen regional ties since assuming the presidency in April.
While he attempts to refurbish his image, Myanmar's military continues to wage a brutal war across much of the country against pro-democracy resistance fighters and armed ethnic minority groups seeking greater autonomy.
In an effort to placate critics, the regime allowed a representative of the International Committee of the Red Cross to visit 81-year-old Suu Kyi this week, the first known contact with an outside international independent humanitarian organisation since her detention.
She was sentenced to 33 years in prison in late 2022 on what her supporters and rights groups said were bogus charges intended to prevent her return to politics.
On April 30, she was moved from prison to house arrest and her sentence was reduced to 18 years, with more than 13 years left to serve.
The United Nations, Western governments and international human rights organisations have repeatedly called for her immediate release.
Min Aung Hlaing's visit to Thailand is part of a broader series of trips to neighbouring countries as the 70-year-old seeks to restore his standing within the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
He faced years of diplomatic isolation following his 2021 takeover and was barred from top-level ASEAN meetings for failing to comply with a peace plan agreed upon in April 2021.
Bangkok has maintained close ties with Myanmar’s military leadership and has emerged as the strongest advocate within ASEAN for renewed engagement with Naypyitaw.
Although the visit officially concerns bilateral relations, Anutin declared during a visit to Indonesia on Tuesday that a peaceful and stable Myanmar was essential to ASEAN unity and regional stability.
