JAKARTA - The Myanmar military has received more than 400,000 COVID-19 vaccines donated by the armed forces of China, India and Russia. Meanwhile, some vaccine aid from China will arrive in the near future, according to a spokesman for the military regime.
"The People's Liberation Army (PLA) will deliver another 400,000 doses next week," Major General Zaw Min Tun said last Monday, citing The Irrawaddy Aug. 18. Furthermore, Major General Zaw Min Tun revealed that previously the Chinese PLA had provided assistance with 200,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccine last May. At that time, the military regime said in a statement that the PLA had donated 500,000 doses of the vaccine which were distributed to hospitals throughout Myanmar.
However, the statement made no mention of a COVID-19 vaccine quota for the military and it was unclear whether the 200,000 injections for the Myanmar military were part of the 500,000 doses or a separate shipment. In July, China donated another two million vaccines.
The Indian military also donated 200,000 stabs to the Myanmar military on February 11, said Zaw Min Tun. On the same day, India shipped two million vaccines out of 30 million purchased by the ousted National League for Democracy (NLD) government. While in January, India also donated 1.5 million doses to the then civilian government.
The Russian military has also donated 900 vaccines to its partners in Myanmar, Major General said. Zaw Min Tun "We mostly rely on donated vaccines. So far about 400,000 or 500,000 people have been vaccinated," he explained.
China, India and Russia all have good relations with the military regime. Both China and Russia have protected the regime on the United Nations Security Council, vetoing United States and British resolutions critical of the regime.
Meanwhile, India also has warm relations with the Myanmar military. In June, India abstained from voting on a UN General Assembly resolution calling for a halt to arms sales to Myanmar.
However, it is not yet known how many members of the Myanmar armed forces have been infected with the coronavirus, as the military has been silent about the number of COVID-19 cases among its personnel.
When asked about the impact of the pandemic on the military, Major General. Zaw Min Tun only said the number of infections was almost the same as that of civilians and the situation was now under control.
While local media and posts on Facebook by the military have been victims of COVID-19, the pandemic has hit the Myanmar military regime and its families hard. There have been reports of low-ranking personnel being turned away by overwhelmed military hospitals.
To note, Myanmar continues to struggle with the third wave of COVID-19, with 6,000 deaths reported nationwide in July. More than 3,000 people a day have tested positive for the coronavirus since the start of this month.
The Myanmar Coup. The editor of VOI continues to monitor the political situation in one of the ASEAN member countries. Civilian casualties continue to fall. Readers can follow news about the Myanmar military coup by tapping this link.
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