Myanmar's Foreign Policy: Domestic influences and international implications

This Adelphi examines Myanmar's foreign policy, which is predicated on state-building and defending the regime's decision to give priority to establishing an enduring constitution over immediate national reconciliation and democratisation.

• Introduction

  For the first time in the country’s post-Cold War history, on 16 December 2005, the situation in Myanmar became the subject of a comprehensive briefing given by United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs Ibrahim Gambari, during informal consultations of the UN Security Council (UNSC). The briefing was the outcome of months of intense lobbying by the administration of George W. Bush to address what Washington has called the ‘deteriorating situation...

• Chapter One: The Political-Security Imperative and Foreign Policy Goals

  The Tatmadaw (armed forces) is Myanmar's premier institution and it has no serious institutional competitors. Since 1988 it has ruled the country through the SLORC and its successor, the SPDC. The SPDC is comprised of Myanmar's top military decision-makers. Yet it has been left to the core military leadership in Yangon, now in Naypyidaw, to flesh out collective policy decisions outside infrequent SPDC meetings in ways similar to a standing committee...

• Chapter Two: Myanmar’s Foreign Policy towards China and India

  Myanmar has benefited substantially from the development of its relations with its two giant neighbours, China and India. While from 1988 the SLORC looked to Beijing to satisfy its immediate need for political support, military assistance and trade, in more recent years the focus has been on diplomatic support and assistance with Myanmar's industrial and infrastructural development. Myanmar's ties with India have improved only more recently, since New Delhi re-evaluated...

• Chapter Three: Myanmar and ASEAN

  A prominent feature of SLORC/SPDC foreign policy has been the drive to become embedded in Southeast Asia's regional society. Myanmar has benefited from developing relations with the ASEAN countries, not least because these ties have effectively relieved international pressure on the regime and helped to avoid the need to compromise its independent foreign policy. Myanmar has also found, however, that following its admission to the grouping in 1997, relations with...

• Chapter Four: Relations with the West and Japan

  Dealing effectively with the United States, Europe and Japan has constituted a major challenge for Myanmar's military government. While these advanced industrialised countries could potentially play a major part in Myanmar's economic development, none of them do. Instead, all have chosen to exert political pressure on the regime. Though this pressure has increased over the years, the SLORC/SPDC has consistently prioritised its political-security imperative over better relations with the West...

• Chapter Five: Myanmar and the United Nations

  Myanmar joined the United Nations less than four months after winning independence in January 1948, primarily to protect itself against future possible aggression by a stronger power. By the end of the socialist era in 1988, Myanmar's legacy to the UN had essentially taken two forms: the executive stewardship of the UN by Secretary-General U Thant from 1961 to 1971; and its unswerving commitment to neutrality and interest in working...

• Conclusion

  Although faced with severe challenges both at home and internationally, Myanmar has managed to pursue a partially successful foreign policy, which has contributed to state and regime security and opened up avenues for increasing economic cooperation. Confronting a comprehensive set of economic and diplomatic sanctions by the United States and the European Union, as well as the suspension of development assistance by Japan, Myanmar's key foreign-policy success has involved exploiting...

Jürgen Haacke is Lecturer in International Relations at the London School of Economics and Political Science.