12 September 2023

As Myanmar hosts the ASEAN Air Force Chiefs’ Conference in Naypyidaw from 12-15 September 2023, Myanmar Witness uses open-source tools to investigate where the Myanmar military has been spending its budget.

Since the military coup, according to SIPRI, the value of most countries’ arms exports to Myanmar has fallen to zero.

However, arms exports to Myanmar from 2 countries - China and Russia - increased significantly in 2022.

China: $102m (+$48m from 2021)
Russia: $276m (+$276m from 2021)

In 2022, 98% of money spent by Myanmar on documented arms imports was spent on aircraft. 97% of that money went to China and Russia.