This is Senior General Shwe Mann in 2008 (seated, center left) -- then the head of Burma's military, now speaker of the lower house of parliament -- with Jon Byong Ho (standing).
Jon was North Korea's proliferator-in-chief, perhaps best known as the author of this letter released by business associate AQ Khan. For many years, Jon ran the Second Economic Committee in North Korea, along with his son-in-law, Yun Ho Jin. My colleague Josh Pollack dubbed them the "Dynamic Duo" of North Korean proliferation. Although Jon is now in his eighties and probably out to pasture, the sight of a senior Burmese general sitting down to dinner with him in North Korea is not encouraging.
The photo is one of nearly 200 images from a trip taken by a senior Burmese military delegation to North Korea in 2008. Another photo offers a rare glimpse inside North Korea's main missile factory.
Source: Democratic Voice of Burma
In addition to the pictures, there is a trip report, which makes clear that the Burmese window-shopped for ballistic missiles at North Korea's primary missile production facility. The list of foreign delegations to have visited this factory is not long -- it includes Egyptians, Syrians, and Iranians. Customers only. The trip report notes that "at an appropriate time, we should continue to produce these strategic weapons step by step." Shwe Mann also took time to sign a memorandum of understanding with the North Koreans on defense cooperation.
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