Junta industry minister Charlie Than visited Russia last week to discuss a Russia-backed steel plant in southern Shan State and importing raw materials to produce medicines domestically, state media reported.
He has been under constant pressure from junta boss Min Aung Hlaing to produce steel and pharmaceutical products in Myanmar to offset the cost of importing them.
Charlie Than visited the city of Yekaterinburg to attend the 14th Industrial Expo from July 7 to 12. He met his Russian counterpart, Anton Alikhanov, and discussed cooperation in cooking oil, textiles and cement production, the import of raw materials for pharmaceutical production, and completing construction of No 2 Steel Mill (Pinpet).
The steel plant near Taunggyi in southern Shan State is a joint venture between military-owned conglomerate Myanmar Economic Corporation and the regime’s major arms supplier, Rostec, a Russian state defense corporation.
Charlie Than also held talks with the deputy provincial governor of Savelyov State about assistance for pharmaceutical production in Myanmar and other issues, state media reported.
He discussed the completion of the steel mill with officials from Russia’s Industry and Trade Ministry and Tyazh Prom Export (the Foreign Economic Association of Russia).
Min Aung Hlaing frequently blames the ousted National League for Democracy (NLD) government for what he describes as its thoughtlessness in suspending the steel mill project when it was 98.86 percent completed. The project was suspended in 2017 by the NLD-led parliament over financial concerns.
The regime resumed the project with help from Russia following its 2021 coup, but it has been struggling to complete the steel mill since then. Last month, Russian Ambassador to Myanmar Iskander Azizov visited the steel mill and reaffirmed that Russia will help operate it.
Min Aung Hlaing has pushed Charlie Than to finish the project as soon as possible, complaining that the country had to spend US$ 995 to import iron and steel in fiscal year 2020.
Last year, Charlie Than attended the 13th Industrial Expo in Yekaterinburg to drum up assistance from Russia to complete the steel mill.
The junta boss also complained about the large dollar expenditure on pharmaceutical imports. Last August, he called for an increase in domestic production of medicine, saying that domestic production only supplies 20 percent of demand and that imports cost $400 million annually.
At the expo, Charlie Than observed a display of iron and steel exploration and production-related machinery, equipment for diagnosis of airborne diseases, as well as pharmaceuticals and medical devices displayed by companies from the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Junta news outlets said he discussed potential cooperation with UAE pharmaceutical companies.
As Myanmar’s currency crisis deepened over the past three years, the cost of importing steel surged and shortages of life-saving medicines became commonplace.
