WOn 7 June 2017, a Shaanxi Y-8 aircraft of the Myanmar Air Force crashed on a flight from Myeik to Yangon, killing all 122 people on board. Debris from the aircraft was found in the Andaman Sea, 118 nautical miles (218 km) off Dawei by Myanmar Navy ships. It is the deadliest aviation accident in Myanmar's history.
WBurma (Myanmar) is widely suspected to have initiated a nuclear weapons programme. If such a program does exist, Burma's technical and financial limitations may make it difficult for the program to succeed.
WThe Commander-in-Chief of Defence Services is the commanding officer of the Tatmadaw, the armed forces of Myanmar.
WThe Commander-in-Chief of Myanmar Army is the highest ranking military officer of the Myanmar Army. Up until 1990, Myanmar Armed Forces has Chief of Staff system and Myanmar Army was led by Vice Chief of Staff (Army). A new system was introduced in 1990 during Armed Forces reorganisation and all three branches of Armed Forces are now led by the Commander-in-Chief.
WThe Myanmar Navy is the naval warfare branch of the armed forces of Myanmar. With 19,000 personnel on duty, the navy operates more than 125 vessels. Prior to 1988, the navy was small, and its role in counter-insurgency operations was smaller than those of the army and the air force. The navy has since been expanded to take on a more active role in defense of Myanmar's territorial waters.
WThe Ministry of Defence is a government ministry in Myanmar (Burma), responsible for the country's national security and the armed forces. The ministry has the largest share of the national budget among all government ministries, with a budget of $2.289 billion USD in 2013. As part of the Burma Sanctions Program, the United States government prohibits its citizens from doing business with the Ministry of Defence of Myanmar or its affiliates.
WThe Myanmar Air Force, known until 1989 as the Burmese Air Force, is the aerial branch of Myanmar's armed forces, the Tatmadaw. The primary mission of the Myanmar Air Force (MAF) since its inception has been to provide transport, logistical, and close air support to the Myanmar Army in counter-insurgency operations. It is mainly used in internal conflicts in Myanmar, and, on a smaller scale, in relief missions, especially after the deadly Cyclone Nargis of May 2008.
WThe Myanmar Army is the largest branch of the Armed Forces (Tatmadaw) of Myanmar (Burma) and has the primary responsibility of conducting land-based military operations. The Myanmar Army maintains the second largest active force in Southeast Asia after the People's Army of Vietnam.
WThe Myanmar Police Force, formally known as the People's Police Force, was established in 1964 as an independent department under the Ministry of Home Affairs. It was reorganised on 1 October 1995 and informally became part of the Tatmadaw.
WThe Tatmadaw is the official name of the armed forces of Myanmar (Burma). It is administered by the Ministry of Defence and composed of the Army, the Navy and the Air Force. Auxiliary services include the Myanmar Police Force, the People's Militia Units and until 2013 the Frontier Forces, locally known as Na Sa Kha.