Myanmar clears path for junta leader to become president

Naypyidaw: Myanmar's junta strongman Min Aung Hlaing took a step closer to becoming the country's civilian president on Monday after lawmakers nominated him for a three-way runoff largely seen as a formality.

The 69-year-old general has ruled Myanmar since a 2021 coup that toppled the democratically elected government of Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi. Amid a period of armed internal conflict, Min Aung Hlaing has overseen severe repression against dissent, including criminalizing protest.

This paved the way for landslide victories among pro-military parties in January's parliamentary election.

Lower house MP Kyaw Kyaw Htay nominated Min Aung Hlaing as the country's vice-president on Monday morning. A parliament-wide vote will now be held between him and two other candidates for the office of president.

Former spymaster Ye Win Oo, a close ally of Min Aung Hlaing, will replace him as military commander.

Junta 'craves' legitimacy
In 2011, Myanmar's military leaders bowed to international pressure to release Aung San Suu Kyi from house arrest and allowed her to take on a civilian leadership role following decades of military dictatorship.

However, after her party defeated pro-military groups in 2020 elections, analysts believe Min Aung Hlaing grew unhappy about the army's waning influence and began to plot the coup.

"This political maneuvering signals that Min Aung Hlaing intends to continue ruling the country with an iron fist," analyst Naing Min Khant of the Institute for Strategy and Policy Myanmar told French news agency AFP.

"He fundamentally lacks legitimacy but desperately craves the facade of it."