BANGKOK -- Shortly after Myanmar's military staged a coup on Feb. 1, the self-annointed junta chief, Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, sent a letter to Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, who came to power in his own coup in 2014. Min Aung Hlaing saw in the irascible former Thai army commander a man he could emulate since Prayuth had become the region's standard-bearer for successfully running a military-dominated state and in the process transforming himself into the premier of an elected, pro-military government.
