(Charlie Campbells’ article from the TIME on 23 September 2026.)
Myanmar Dictator Wants to Rebuild
Ties With the West: First came the mirror. Before Min Aung Hlaing enters the
room for his first Western media interview since seizing power in a 2021 coup
d’état, aides maneuver an ornate Rococo revival looking glass into place for
preening. Then come requests for his portrait: light him from the left, the
better to disguise a thinning hairline no longer hidden beneath an olive cap.
Myanmar’s former commander in chief
now calls himself President, following January elections widely condemned as
fraudulent. His fitful transformation from generalissimo to civilian statesman
extends even to awkward attempts at bonhomie. He confesses to loving golf—he
plays off an 18 handicap—though a bad back has lately kept him from the
fairway.
Yet the makeover has limits. The geniality fades when questions turn to human rights, narcotics trafficking, or sanctioned relatives. Even his birthplace remains classified. “I used to revisit my township very often, so if you can carefully watch the news, you can figure out where I’m native,” he says cryptically.








