President Min Aung Hlaing’s visit to India is significant given that Myanmar’s civil war since 2021 has affected India’s border security and management. From India’s perspective, Myanmar is an important player in its Act East calculus. India has engaged with Myanmar while dealing with the post-coup wave of refugees and the drug and arms trafficking which is exacerbating community tensions and conflict in Manipur.

The President of Myanmar, Min Aung Hlaing, who assumed office in April 2026, concluded his first foreign visit to India in early June 2026. Hlaing’s visit to India began with prayers at the Mahabodhi Temple in Gaya, Bihar, on 30 May. He later travelled to New Delhi for official talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi before proceeding to Mumbai, where he met business leaders to explore investment opportunities and strengthen bilateral trade relations.

Discussions with Prime Minister Modi focused on trade, connectivity, defence, healthcare, education and cooperation in advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence and space exploration. They also revolved around “refugee flows from Myanmar to India, cybercrime, connectivity projects, and broader security cooperation”.[1] During engagements with stakeholders in India’s energy sector, the Myanmar President explored cutting-edge net-zero technologies, including green hydrogen, solar power and carbon capture. President Hlaing also met President Smt. Droupadi Murmu, during which the two leaders engaged in productive discussions to strengthen bilateral ties.[2]

Min Aung Hlaing’s visit is significant in several respects, particularly because of the ongoing civil war in Myanmar since 2021, which has had important implications for India’s border security. Myanmar and India share a 1,643 km border. The Ministry of External Affairs stated that New Delhi continued to support enduring peace and an inclusive political process involving all stakeholders in Myanmar, arguing that sustained dialogue rather than disengagement offers the best prospect for progress. Furthermore, President Hlaing, the former head of Myanmar’s military junta, assured India that Myanmar’s territory would not be permitted to be used against India’s security interests.

First Visit to India: A Background

India and Myanmar share a multi-dimensional relationship encompassing historical, cultural, economic and strategic dimensions. The strategic and border-security dimensions of this relationship have become increasingly relevant over the last three decades. Hlaing has been governing the country essentially as Commander-in-Chief and junta leader since the February 2021 military coup, when the military refused to accept the results of the 2020 general election. Since then, his authority has been derived from the military and, now, from the 2008 Constitution. The latest elections, held between December 2025 and January 2026, did not fundamentally change who controls the country. The face of the regime in Myanmar’s governance is a civilian government backed by the military.[3]

Hlaing’s presidency has brought constitutional legitimacy and greater acceptability in the diplomatic realm. It reflects a broader pattern in which the military assumes political office, directly and indirectly institutionalising military dominance within a civilian framework. Myanmar has witnessed this pattern before. This introduces another dimension to the international legitimisation of the new regime. Therefore, his early foreign visits should be viewed as more than mere diplomacy. They represent an effort to secure external recognition and enhance the regime’s political legitimacy at a time when its domestic authority remains contested.

Since the coup in February 2021, Min Aung Hlaing, as the head of the junta government and acting president since July 2024, has faced persistent questions of legitimacy from most Western democracies and even from ASEAN as a collective body.[4] Even amid these circumstances, Hlaing has continued to travel to China and Russia. Since the coup, he has visited Russia four times and China twice, and Chinese ministers and officials have continued to visit Naypyidaw regularly.[5] His overseas travel has otherwise included only two visits to ASEAN member states, Thailand and Indonesia.[6] Since President Hlaing assumed office, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has been the only foreign official to visit Myanmar’s new president. This is indicative of the priorities and direction of President Hlaing and his administration. Given that his visit to India took place at India’s invitation, the trip is especially significant.

The Beijing Guarantor

In April 2026, Myanmar’s new President Hlaing received Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi only a few days after assuming office.[7] China’s approach to Myanmar has demonstrated that political stability remains its primary concern, often taking precedence over concerns such as democracy, federalism, political reform and human rights. In the current context, the central question is no longer the future of democracy in Myanmar but whether the country remains governable despite persistent instability. This suggests that China is likely to support........

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