India-Myanmar Relations

Myanmar is the only ASEAN country that shares a land border with India. That makes it India’s gateway to Southeast Asia. It is also a neighbour in turmoil, with a civil war since 2021.

Think of three questions as you read. How did the two start as friends? Why did India deal with the military? And why are the big road projects stuck?

1How did India and Myanmar begin as friends?

Burma, now Myanmar, became independent from Britain in 1948. India set up diplomatic relations that year. The two signed a Treaty of Friendship in 1951. It promised “everlasting peace and unalterable friendship.” (Source: Hudson Institute)

Nehru and Burma’s leader U Nu were close friends. Both countries had just left British rule, and both chose non-alignment. They also shared a long border and old cultural links.

• Independence and ties: 1948.
• Treaty of Friendship: 1951.
• Nehru and U Nu: close friends.

2What changed after the 1962 coup?

General Ne Win took power in a coup in 1962. India was the first country to recognise his government. It did this to keep a stable neighbour, not because it liked the junta. (Source: Hudson Institute)

In 1964 Ne Win expelled hundreds of thousands of people of Indian origin and seized their property. Ties cooled for years after that.

• 1962: Ne Win coup. India recognises it first.
• 1964: Indians expelled.
• India chose stability over principle.

3What is the border, and what was the Free Movement Regime?

The border is about 1,643 km long and touches four states: Mizoram, Manipur, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh. Only a short stretch of about 10 km in Manipur has a fence. The Assam Rifles guards it.

The Free Movement Regime began in 1968. Villagers near the border could cross without a visa or passport. Many border communities are one people, with families on both sides. In 2018 it was brought under the Act East Policy.

In February 2024 the Home Ministry decided to scrap it, citing internal security. By December 2024, new rules required biometric border passes. They are valid for seven days and allow travel only within 10 km of the border. (Source: PIB)

Border villagers say the sealing divides families. (Source: Al Jazeera)

• Border: 1,643 km, four states.
• FMR began 1968; Act East link 2018.
• Dec 2024: biometric pass, 7 days, 10 km.

4How did Look East become Act East?

In the early 1990s India launched its Look East policy. Myanmar was the natural land bridge to Southeast Asia. India moved from backing democracy in Myanmar to dealing with whoever ruled in Naypyitaw. (Source: The Diplomat)

The reasons were practical. China had grown close to the junta. India wanted to stop Northeast insurgents from using Myanmar as a hideout. In 2014 the policy was renamed Act East.

Modi went to Myanmar for summits in November 2014. He made a State Visit in September 2017, when eleven agreements were signed.

• Look East: early 1990s. Act East: 2014.
• India chose realism over idealism.
• Modi visits: 2014, 2017.

5What are Kaladan and the Trilateral Highway?

India and Myanmar signed the Kaladan Multi-Modal Transit Project framework in 2008, and work began in 2010. The route runs from Kolkata port by sea to Sittwe port. Boats then go 158 km up the Kaladan river to Paletwa. A 109 km road should reach Zorinpui in Mizoram. That last road is still unfinished. (Source: The Week)

The Northeast connects to mainland India only through the narrow Siliguri Corridor. Kaladan gives it a second route from the sea, and offsets China’s role in Myanmar’s ports.

The India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway is about 1,360 km long, from Moreh in Manipur to Mae Sot in Thailand. It was meant to open in 2015 and is still unfinished. (Source: Deccan Herald)

• Kaladan: Kolkata → Sittwe → Paletwa → Zorinpui.
• Purpose: a second route to the Northeast.
• Trilateral Highway: Moreh to Mae Sot, ~1,360 km.
• Stalled by the civil war; Arakan Army took Paletwa in 2024.

6What changed after the 2021 coup?

Myanmar’s military seized power on 1 February 2021. Resistance forces and ethnic armed groups have fought the junta since. Thousands of refugees, many from the Chin community, fled into Mizoram, Manipur and nearby states. Mizoram has sheltered them. New Delhi has been more cautious. (Source: Al Jazeera)

Myanmar held an election in January 2026, in areas under military control. The military-backed USDP won, and junta leader Min Aung Hlaing became president in April 2026. Many countries doubted the vote. India took a stability-first line. (Source: ORF)

India and Myanmar held their 23rd National Level Meeting in New Delhi on 7 and 8 July 2026. It is a Home Ministry security dialogue. Both sides agreed to share more intelligence. Myanmar assured India its soil would not be used against India. Both reaffirmed work on Kaladan and the Trilateral Highway. (Source: PIB)

• Coup: 1 Feb 2021. Election: Jan 2026.
• Min Aung Hlaing president: April 2026.
• 23rd National Level Meeting: 7–8 July 2026.

7What are the exam traps?

• Myanmar is the only ASEAN member that shares a land border with India.
• FMR: 1968 start, 2018 Act East link, Dec 2024 tightening.
• Kaladan reaches Sittwe by sea, then Mizoram by river and road.
• Trilateral Highway: Moreh to Mae Sot, ~1,360 km.
• Kaladan and the highway are stalled by the civil war.