Myanmar junta opens consulate in arms-supplier Belarus
Myanmar's military regime has taken a step towards bolstering its relations with Belarus, a key arms supplier to the junta and one of the few nations seeking closer ties with North Korea.
The establishment of a Myanmar consulate in Minsk marks the eighteenth such diplomatic mission opened by Myanmar around the world, reflecting the junta's efforts to expand its international footprint.
Belarus reciprocated this diplomatic gesture by appointing an ambassador to Myanmar last year. The opening ceremony of the consulate in Minsk, which took place on September 15, was attended by high-ranking officials, including Myanmar's Foreign Minister, Than Swe, and Belarus's Deputy Foreign Minister, Evgeny Shestakov, along with representatives from the Belarusian Foreign Ministry and Myanmar scholars residing in Minsk.
Before heading to Minsk, Foreign Minister Than Swe made a stopover in Russia, where he held talks with his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov. Notably, the military regime has also established consulates in St. Petersburg and Novosibirsk, Russia's third-largest city, reflecting the significance of its relationships with both Russia and Belarus as major arms suppliers.
The United States had previously sanctioned three Myanmar nationals in October the previous year for their involvement in brokering Russian arms shipments through Belarus. Despite international condemnation, Russia has consistently supported the Myanmar regime at the United Nations, and Belarus, too, refrained from condemning the junta's coup at the UN.
It is worth noting that Myanmar's junta had expressed support for the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and Belarus allowed Russian troops to cross its border into Ukraine during the conflict. Consequently, both the European Union and the United States imposed a series of sanctions on Belarusian individuals, politicians, and state-owned enterprises.
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