Myanmar and Serbia maintain diplomatic relations established between Myanmar and SFR Yugoslavia in 1950. From 1950 to 2006, Myanmar maintained relations with the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (SFRY) and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY) (later Serbia and Montenegro), of which Serbia is considered shared (SFRY) or sole (FRY) legal successor.
History Relations between Yugoslavia and Burma officially began in 1950, and the two countries had an unusually close relationship during the Cold War. In 1947, Kyaw Nyein and another high ranking Burmese politician visited Yugoslavia, and the 1946 Yugoslav Constitution was the basis for the 1947 Burmese Constitution.DASMIP, PA, 1947, f-124, 425154, Zabeleska o razgovoru druga Price sa predstavnikom burmanske vlade Maung Ohn, dana 5 decembra 1947 godine [Minutes of conversation between comrade Prica and the representative of the Burmese Government Maung Ohn, December 5th 1947]. F. S. V. Donnison, Burma (London: Ernest Benn Limited, 1970), p. 141. The Chinese Embassy in Rangoon described the relations between Yugoslavia and Burma in a confidential report in 1958 as, "relations between Burma and Yugoslavia...fall into special category of relations...while the political cooperation between these two countries cannot be ignored."Chinese Foreign Ministry Archives (hereafter CFMA), 105-00846-02(1), Miandian yu Nansilafu de guanxi (Zhongguo zhu Miandian shiguan bianxie ziliao) [Burma-Yugoslavia relations (materials collected by the Chinese Embassy in Burma)], December 18th 1958, p. 8.
The Burmese government viewed Yugoslavia as a prime example of the socialist path they wanted Burma to take, and several high ranking Burmese politicians, including Kyaw Nyein, expressed their desires to transform Burma into the "Yugoslavia of Asia."Hugh Tinker, The Union of Burma: A Study of the First Years of Independence (London, New York: Oxford University Press, 1961. 3rd Edition), p. 362. Both Burma and Yugoslavia shared many commonalities, among them the diverse ethnic groups and religions, and the endeavor of a policy of neutrality during the Cold War.
In 1952, shortly before the two nations appointed ambassadors, the Burmese government reached out to the Yugoslav embassy in Pakistan to ask for an arms deal, and the deal was later solidified during a state visit to Belgrade.Bertil Lintner, Burma in Revolt: Opium and Insurgency since 1948, p. 154. Due to the rather fast and uninhibited nature of the arms deliveries, the Burmese military, and General Ne Win in particular, who previously sought support from the United States, was impressed.NARA, RG 59, 690B.9321/12-2253, Memorandum of Conversation between General Ne Win and the Army and Air Attachés of the U.S. Embassy in Burma, December 22nd 1953. In the following decades, Yugoslavia became one of, if not the primary arms supplier of Burma.Vojni leksikon [Military Lexicon] (Beograd: Vojnoizdavacki zavod, 1981), p. 71.
H.E. U Zaw Tun, the 18th ambassador of Myanmar to Serbia, donated a bronze statue of Buddha to the Middle Way Therawada Buddhist Association in Belgrade in 2013, and the embassy there hosts a variety of cultural events.“H.E U Zaw Tun Donates Bronze Buddha Statue to Middle Way Therawada Buddhist Meditation Association.” Embassy of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar, Belgrade, 8 Aug. 2013.
Burmese Senior General Min Aung Hlaing visited the Belgrade embassy and Kalemegdan Fortress in 2015.
Resident diplomatic missions Myanmar has an embassy in Belgrade. Serbia has an embassy in Yangon.
See also
Foreign relations of Myanmar Foreign relations of Serbia Burma–Yugoslavia relations Yugoslavia and the Non-Aligned Movement
References
Sources
External links Embassy of Serbia in Yangon Embassy of Myanmar in Belgrade