FILE PHOTO: Myanmar’s junta chief Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, who ousted the elected government in a coup on February 1, presides an army parade on Armed Forces Day in Naypyitaw, Myanmar, March 27, 2021. REUTERS/Stringer/File Photo
June 20, 2021
(Reuters) -Myanmar’s junta leader has flown out of the country to attend a conference in Moscow, state media reported on Sunday, his second trip abroad since seizing power in February.
Senior General Min Aung Hlaing will attend the Moscow Conference on International Security, scheduled to be held from June 22-24, Myanmar military-controlled television network MRTV reported on Sunday. Since taking power he has travelled abroad only to attend a regional summit hosted by Indonesia in April.
The army overthrew a civilian government led by Aung San Suu Kyi after her administration dismissed its allegations of fraud over her party’s landslide election victory in November. International monitors had said the vote was fair.
The United Nations General Assembly on Friday called for a halt to the flow of arms to Myanmar and urged the military to respect the November election results and release political detainees, including Suu Kyi.
The trial of Suu Kyi, 75, resumes on Monday. She has been accused of charges ranging from the possession of radios to violating secrecy and corruption laws.
On Saturday, Myanmar’s foreign ministry released a statement rejecting the U.N. resolution, which it said was “based on one-sided sweeping allegations and false assumptions”.
The statement also questioned the legitimacy of Myanmar’s UN ambassador Kyaw Moe Tun, who has been speaking on behalf of the country’s elected civilian government. Protests have been held almost daily in Myanmar since the coup.
(Reporting by Reuters Staff; Writing by James Pearson; Editing by Edmund Blair)
