Military-ruled Myanmar appears to have adopted the tactics of sanction-busting nations such as Russia, Iran and North Korea by using evasive sailing routes and dodgy ships to disguise the sources of aviation fuel it uses for air attacks in the country’s civil war, according to a report by Amnesty International.
The London-based group’s investigation said its analysis of trade, shipping, satellite and port authority data indicates that the Myanmar military imported over 109,000 tonnes of aviation fuel in 2025 — an increase of 69% over the previous year and the highest volume since the army ousted the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in 2021.
Amnesty said the fuel was delivered on “ghost ships” that turn off their Automatic Identification System (AIS) location-tracking radios to avoid detection. The vessels repeatedly change their name, flag or ownership, and often load fuel through open-water ship-to-ship transfers instead of at ports and terminals.
Opponents of Myanmar’s military government have described cutting off its supply of aviation fuel as crucial to curbing its war-making capacity, which has resulted in many civilian casualties. Since the army takeover sparked nationwide resistance, more than 7,700 civilians have been killed by state security forces, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners.
Various international sanctions led by the United States and Britain have not been effective in stopping the air attacks, according to Amnesty. The military actions are also supported by arms, largely from Russia and China, major allies of the ruling generals.
Amnesty has called for a ban on shipping aviation fuel to Myanmar and the withdrawal of all companies involved in the supply chain. It acknowledged it was unable to confirm the suppliers or origin of the fuel, but said the evasion tactics “mirror methods commonly used by tankers that move sanctioned fuel from Iran.”
