Min Aung Hlaing Appoints Female Mouthpiece as Myanmar Regime Bids for Legitimacy

Myanmar’s rebranded regime has appointed Dr. Khaing Khaing Soe as presidential spokesperson, announcing the move upon coup leader Min Aung Hlaing’s return from his first trip abroad as head of state on Wednesday.

Married to a colonel in the Myanmar Army, Khaing Khaing Soe currently serves as deputy minister for immigration. She addressed the media for the first time in her new role at Naypyitaw Airport as Min Aung Hlaing arrived back from a four-day visit to India.

Her appointment fills a post left vacant for months after the removal of former spokesperson Major General Zaw Min Tun, who had been the junta’s chief propagandist since the 2021 coup.

Khaing Khaing Soe called Min Aung Hlaing’s India trip “a success with notable achievements in diplomatic and economic areas.” She urged the public to obey the president’s policies and directives, echoing the rhetoric of her predecessor, Zaw Min Tun, who spent the last five years shielding the coup leader with relentless propaganda as his takeover plunged the country into a bloody civil war.