Senior General deepens ties with Russia, stresses nuclear power plans
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Phyo Lin Aung (NP News) - Sep 27
On 24 September 2025, Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, Chairman of the State Security and Peace Commission, commenced his official visit to the Russian Federation. After his first official goodwill visit to Russia in March, this is his fourth trip to Russia in 2025, which clearly indicates that the ties between Myanmar and Russia are getting stronger.
During the first official goodwill visit to Russia in March this year, Senior General Min Aung Hlaing met with President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin Palace in Moscow on March 4. Apart from a personal meeting, a joint statement was released, and 10 intergovernmental and interdepartmental agreements were signed by the two leaders. In the same trip, on 6 March 2025, the Senior General visited Belarus and met with President Alexander Lukashenko to deepen Myanmar–Belarus relations.
The second trip to Russia was in May 2025. The Senior General attended the celebration of the 80th anniversary of the Soviet Union's victory against Nazi Germany. Myanmar was able to widen its relations with several countries during that visit.
The third trip to Russia was in June 2025, following another visit to Belarus. The meetings in Moscow were aimed at the extension of the bilateral cooperation in different areas.
Focus on nuclear energy
The first and foremost objective of the current working visit is to participate in the World Atomic Week Forum 2025, an event held in Russia that is dedicated to and celebrated the 80th anniversary of the foundation of Russia’s nuclear industry. The leaders' attendance at this conference is by exclusive invitation whereby only a handful of them are allowed. Among them, Myanmar's inclusion underscores its status as one of Russia's closest partners.
During this forum, the Senior General emphasized the role of nuclear energy and technology to meet the world’s requirements in energy, agriculture, medicine, and industry. Moreover, he also acknowledged the continuous need for the safety of the people, treatment of waste materials, and the protection of the environment in the peaceful use of nuclear power, and stated: “Though nuclear energy, when utilized in a peaceful way in different areas, shows a lot of advantages to mankind, it also has inherent shortcomings. Therefore, in the use of nuclear energy, there is a need to manage the radioactive waste systematically so as not to injure the natural environment and ecosystem, there is a need to prevent the leakage of radiation from nuclear materials, and there is a need to have a well-organized plan in place to ensure safety and to also prevent nuclear accidents.”
He mentioned that Myanmar signed an MoU with ROSATOM in 2022 to use nuclear energy as clean energy, thus having the country’s nuclear program laid the foundation. Myanmar is carrying out this program in three milestones and three phases, which are in line with the guidelines of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the ROSATOM timetable.
Since 1957, the IAEA has been supporting Myanmar through a Technical Cooperation Program that provides technical support, funding, equipment, and human resource development. At the moment, the country is collaborating with ROSATOM to establish a small nuclear power plant as well as planning for future development of the nuclear power grid.
The Senior General sent a message to Russia and ROSATOM for more assistance in terms of nuclear infrastructure, technology, and training. At the same time, he requested the IAEA to provide more training for human resources.
Meeting with President Putin
Among the events during the visit, the Senior General had a meeting with President Putin who, among other things, underlined that the two countries have maintained direct diplomatic contacts for over 70 years. The leaders went over the agreements signed at the beginning of 2025 and took steps towards their implementation.
In addition, they also discussed military-to-military relations. It was stated that, in both cases, these relations were maintained on a basis of mutual understanding and friendship. The Senior General, while stating that all nations have the right to protect their territorial integrity and to ensure the security of their citizens, nevertheless supported Russia’s peace-making efforts.
Moreover, he confirmed that Myanmar would have a transparent and competitive multi-party general election in the near future and the transfer of power would be in line with democratic practices. Besides that, he mentioned that international observers would be invited to oversee the process.
Officially it has been stated that the Senior General will also go to Kazakhstan in the near future following an invite from President Kassym Jomart Tokayev.
Since the fourth trip to Russia in 2025 is designated as a working trip, this visit signals a consistent foreign policy of the staying power of Myanmar aimed at deepening Myanmar's strategic, nuclear, and diplomatic ties with Russia and its allies. A key anticipated outcome from the trip is the advancement of cooperation in sustainable energy, bolstering both Myanmar's energy security and its international standing.–