The origin of Myanmar and Japan can be traced back to before World War II. At that time, the father of Myanmar's independence, General Ang Shan, and other Burmese elites went to China to seek help. Originally, they did not want to find Japan, but the whereabouts of Ang Shan and others were discovered by Japanese spies. At that time, Japan had already considered "going south", so they took the initiative to contact Ang Shan and others in Xiamen. Under the influence of the Japanese, Ang Shan, Nai Wen, and others received secret training from the Japanese on Hainan Island, including military training.
Until today, many Burmese military generals have regarded the former head of Japan's secret service in Myanmar, Kyushi Suzuki, as the "father of the Burmese army". Myanmar's senior military officials have visited Kyushi Suzuki's cemetery to pay their respects during their previous visits to Japan.
In the eyes of Burmese elites such as Ang Shan, although Japan had also wanted to annex Myanmar at the end of World War II and turn it into an overseas province of Japan, the time was short, and as Japan gradually retreated on the Pacific battlefield, Japan took the initiative to "grant" Myanmar "independent" status.
So, although Ang Shan later joined the anti fascist united front in a timely manner, these Burmese elites always had a favorable impression of the Japanese.
For example, after the end of World War II, Japan faced a food crisis domestically. At that time, Myanmar, which had not yet established diplomatic relations with Japan, sold hundreds of thousands of tons of rice to Japan at prices far below international grain prices, greatly alleviating Japan's domestic food crisis.
Japanese politicians such as Nobusuke Kishi, who still have militaristic ambitions, have been advocating domestically that Japanese soldiers should not let their blood flow in vain on the Pacific battlefield and must maintain good relations with Southeast Asian countries such as Myanmar.
At that time, Japanese politicians led by Nobusuke Kishi, Shintaro Abe, and Michio Watanabe deliberately maintained close relationships with senior Burmese officials in Japan. Even if Nay Win launched a military coup and engaged in military dictatorship, this close relationship was not shaken. Due to their close relationship with Nay Win, Nobusuke Kishi and others were even known as the "Burmese lobbying group" in Japan.
During the military dictatorship of Nay Win, four Japanese Prime Ministers insisted on conducting official visits to Myanmar, despite the fact that Myanmar was still a military government at the time. Nay Win himself also visited Japan several times.
In addition, the famous Japanese female singer during World War II, "Li Xianglan" (real name Shuko Yamaguchi), was a close friend of General Naiwen.
Because Myanmar and Japan even established close personal relationships with politicians, Myanmar became the first stop for Japan to penetrate Southeast Asia after World War II.