Myanmar junta appoints only military officers to vacant positions in Myanmar Space Agency

Mizzima

According to the Myanmar Gazette published on 28 August, the junta has appointed 19 military officers from the Ministry of Defence to vacant positions within the Myanmar Space Agency (MSA).

Among the 19 appointed officers are six lieutenant colonels, nine majors, and four captains.

Lieutenant Colonel Myo Tun Hlaing has been appointed Deputy Director-General of the Bureau of Space Science and Technology, while Lieutenant Colonel Ba Win Aye has been appointed Deputy Director-General of the Bureau of Administration, Management, and Strategic Planning, according to the Gazette.

The remaining military officers have been assigned to roles such as Director, Deputy Director, and Assistant Director across various departments within the agency, the Gazette said.

The junta established the Myanmar Space Agency on 1 June 2025. Dr. Soe Myint Maung currently serves as Director General of the agency, and Dr. Myo Thant serves as Deputy Director General.

With these latest appointments, the remaining vacant administrative positions within the agency have been filled entirely by military officers, excluding civilian professionals.

When the agency was first established, it was tasked with 20 mandates, including supervising and coordinating the launching, control, and operation of state-owned and privately owned satellites, and serving as a central hub for the storage, distribution, and provision of satellite imagery and data.

The junta is deepening space-related cooperation with Russia. During junta chief Min Aung Hlaing’s trip to Moscow from 17 to 20 August, he and Russian President Vladimir Putin oversaw the signing of 12 bilateral pacts, including a human spaceflight cooperation agreement between Roscosmos chief Dmitry Bakanov and Soe Myint Maung committing to select and train a Myanmar cosmonaut for a launch by 2028. The agreements also include plans for a Russian satellite navigation data station and a near-Earth hazard tracking system, with land already allocated at the Myanmar Aerospace Engineering University in Meiktila, Mandalay Region.