Behind the Scenes: China’s Hand in Myanmar’s Election

As Myanmar’s military regime prepares to stage controversial elections later this year, China has quietly stepped up its behind-the-scenes diplomacy, strengthening ties with regime-aligned political parties and institutions.

Since the 2021 military coup, more than 10 Myanmar political parties—mainly those registered with the junta’s election commission—have been invited to China by the Communist Party of China (CPC), with nearly half a dozen visits occurring in 2025 alone. The invitations only began after the junta introduced a new party registration law in 2023, with the military’s proxy Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) and People’s Pioneer Party (PPP) receiving the most frequent invitations.