Fortify Rights urges Thailand not to legitimize Myanmar’s Junta Chief ahead of August visit

The Thai government should press Myanmar junta leader Min Aung Hlaing for concrete progress on civilian protection and accountability during his planned visit to Thailand next month, rather than treat the trip as an opportunity to confer legitimacy on his rule, Fortify Rights said in a statement on 31 July. Min Aung Hlaing is expected to visit Thailand in the first week of August at the invitation of the Thai government. The trip follows a series of high-level engagements between Thailand and Myanmar’s junta since Min Aung Hlaing declared himself “president” following elections in December 2025 and January 2026 that the United Kingdom, the European Union, Canada and Australia rejected as illegitimate, and that ASEAN declined to recognize. Thailand’s deputy prime minister and foreign minister, Sihasak Phuangketkeow, previously visited Naypyitaw and met Min Aung Hlaing, where the two governments agreed to strengthen cooperation on cross-border issues including narcotics, online scam operations and mining-related river pollution. Junta-appointed Foreign Minister Tin Maung Swe visited Bangkok in July and met Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul, who then invited Min Aung Hlaing to visit. Anutin told reporters on 22 July that the visit would be an opportunity to discuss bilateral issues including river pollution, agricultural burning and the source of the drug trade, saying “we need to discuss matters that are in the interests of both countries.” The visit comes as Myanmar’s military continues what Fortify Rights described as widespread and systematic attacks on civilians, including airstrikes, arbitrary arrests, torture, extrajudicial killings and attacks on civilian infrastructure. The United Nations says the conflict has displaced nearly 3.8 million people, with more than 16 million in need of humanitarian assistance. Min Aung Hlaing is the subject of a request for an arrest warrant filed by the International Criminal Court’s prosecutor in November 2024 over crimes against humanity linked to the deportation and persecution of Rohingya people. An Argentine federal court separately issued an arrest warrant against him in February 2025 citing universal jurisdiction over genocide and crimes against humanity against the Rohingya. Thanida Piyachot, a human rights specialist at Fortify Rights, said the visit risked conferring legitimacy on a junta leader responsible for grave rights violations, and that Thailand and ASEAN “must stop hiding behind the non-interference policy.”