BEIJING – According to an obituary in Myanmar official media and diplomatic sources in Beijing, Myanmar’s ambassador to China died unexpectedly on Sunday in the southwestern Chinese city of Kunming.
The reason of death for Ambassador U Myo Thant Pe was not specified in an obituary published in a state newspaper on Monday by Myanmar’s foreign ministry.
According to diplomats in Beijing and a Chinese-language Myanmar media outlet, the cause was most likely a heart attack.
According to a local news report, U Myo Thant Pe was last seen on Saturday speaking with a local official in the southern Chinese province of Yunnan, which borders Myanmar.
The Myanmar embassy in China did not reply quickly to a request for comment.
U Myo Thant Pe was appointed ambassador to China in 2019 and remained in office after Myanmar’s military seized power in a February 2021 coup.
He was China’s fourth ambassador to die since 2021.
Serhiy Kamyshev, the Ukraine ambassador, died in February 2021 during or shortly after visiting a Beijing Winter Olympics venue. Jan Hecker, the German ambassador to China, died in September, little than two weeks into his assignment. more info
Jose Santiago “Chito” Sta. Romana, 74, of the Philippines, died in quarantine in the eastern Chinese province of Anhui in April.
Source: Reuters