Regime’s Moscow Show Masks Military Collapse in Myanmar; and More

Pomp in Russia, white flags at home

The Myanmar military’s participation in last week’s 80th Victory Day parade in Moscow demonstrated that it is on a par with any other armed force around the world, junta spokesman Major General Zaw Min Tun boasted to junta-affiliated media.

The grand parade in Moscow was little more than an empty show of strength by Russia, which remains tangled in a drawn-out war with Ukraine and battered by Western sanctions imposed for its invasion. The parade was meant to show that it still has friends.

But eager to grasp any shred of international relevance, Myanmar’s pariah regime rushed to join the march-by, beaming with pride over the association.