China-Burma relations
Individual Documents
Sub-title:
China has vowed to strengthen strategic links and advance economic projects such as the Kyaukphyu Special Economic Zone (SEZ) in Myanmar, said Chinese ambassador to Myanmar Chen Hai, prior to Chinese President Xi Jinping's expected visit to the country on January 17.
Description:
"“Chinese president Xi Jinping’s visit to Myanmar will greatly advance bilateral relations,” Mr Chen said, according to a report by Chinese newspaper Golden Phoenix, seen by The Myanmar Times.
Coinciding with the 70th anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and Myanmar, Xi’s visit marks the first trip to the country as president and 19 years after former president Jiang Zeming’s visit.
“Taking President Xi's visit as an opportunity, the two will strengthen strategic links, sign a series of deals and advance progress in economic projects,” said Mr Chen. The two countries will ink several deals, including the US$1.3 billion Kyaukphyu port project, while Xi is expected to push ahead the China-Myanmar Economic Corridor (CMEC) scheme as well as other projects under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).
Initiated in 2017 under the framework of Xi’s multi-billion development strategy BRI, the corridor scheme features a Y-shaped route from China’s Yunnan Province to Myanmar’s Rakhine State and Yangon with multiple projects initiated, including the Kyaukphyu SEZ and port project, a railway project that falls on this route, among others.
The fact that the Myanmar government set up the Steering Committee for the Implementation of the Community and the Silk Road Project chaired by State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi is a demonstration of Myanmar’s commitment to the BRI, as seen by China..."
Source/publisher:
"Myanmar Times" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2020-01-14
Date of entry/update:
2020-01-15
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Other Special Economic Zones, Burma's economic relations with China, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Description:
"Myanmar is a fulcrum of the Belt and Road Initiative and an important corridor between China and Southeast and South Asia. As a traditional friendly neighbor, Myanmar has established a comprehensive strategic partnership with China. Apart from participating in the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative, Myanmar was among the first 21 countries to join the China-initiated Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. Also, China is Myanmar's biggest source of foreign investment.
Since 2013, China and Myanmar together have made remarkable achievements in taking forward the Belt and Road Initiative.
First, the two countries have not only maintained frequent high-level mutual visits but also improved their cooperation mechanism, and thus strengthened mutual political trust. In April 2015, President Xi Jinping met with U Thein Sein, then president of Myanmar, on the sidelines of the Asian-African Summit that was held to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the Bandung Conference in Indonesia. In October of the same year, Xi met with Myanmar State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi on the sidelines of the 8th BRICS Summit in India. He also met with Suu Kyi three times at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing between May 2017 and April 2019..."
Source/publisher:
"China Daily" (Beijing)
Date of publication:
2020-01-14
Date of entry/update:
2020-01-14
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
“One Belt, One Road” initiative, Burma's economic relations with China, Other Special Economic Zones, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Description:
"In 1950, Myanmar established diplomatic ties with China. But the bilateral economic relations of the friendly neighbors date back to the pre-Christian era and have flourished recently.
As an old Chinese saying goes, "A good neighbor is better than a far-dwelling relative."
Booming bilateral trade
China is the largest trading partner as well as one of the most important sources of investment for Myanmar. Official data shows that as of July in 2019, China's cumulative investment in Myanmar accounted for over 25 percent of Myanmar's total foreign investment.
Centuries ago, there was a land route between China, Myanmar and India, the southwestern Silk Road. And for that long, China mainly exported silk, porcelain, tea and metals to Myanmar while importing shells as currency, spices, wood and jade from its neighbor..."
Source/publisher:
"China Global Television Network (CGTN)" (China)
Date of publication:
2020-01-14
Date of entry/update:
2020-01-14
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
“One Belt, One Road” initiative, Burma's economic relations with China, Border Trade with China, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Sub-title:
Two-day trip could be ‘milestone’ for relations if progress on Rohingya refugee crisis and stalled US$3.6 billion Myitsone dam project can be made...Xi’s visit could involve ‘dozens’ of cultural, political and economic agreements
Description:
"Chinese President Xi Jinping will try to kick-start stalled Belt and Road Initiative projects and attempt to mediate in the Rohingya crisis during a two-day visit to Myanmar this week to mark the 70th anniversary of relations between the nations, analysts said.
Ties between Myanmar and China – its biggest trading partner – have strengthened rapidly in recent years, although violent conflicts and one of the world’s largest refugee emergencies pose major challenges to Beijing’s goals in the Southeast Asian country. Xi’s visit is expected to begin on Friday, the first by a Chinese leader since Jiang Zemin 19 years ago, and may be a “milestone” for bilateral ties, according to Beijing’s senior envoy in Naypyidaw, Myanmar’s capital.
Xi would meet the country’s senior military and political leaders, and the two sides were expected to sign “dozens” of agreements in culture, politics and the economy, state newspaper Global Times quoted Chen Hai, China’s ambassador, as saying on Sunday..."
Source/publisher:
"South China Morning Post" (Hong Kong)
Date of publication:
2020-01-13
Date of entry/update:
2020-01-14
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
China-Burma relations, Burma's economic relations with China, Politics and Government - global and regional - general studies, strategies, theory
Language:
more
Sub-title:
Bilateral agreements set this week could have implications for generations to come
Description:
"
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https://www.ft.com/content/df96fcf4-35e4-11ea-ac3c-f68c10993b04
President Xi Jinping, who travels to Myanmar this week, will be the first Chinese leader to visit in nearly 20 years. What happens next in bilateral relations could determine Myanmar’s future and China’s place in the region for generations.
Beijing hopes for the speedy realisation of a China-Myanmar Economic Corridor, a massive infrastructure scheme valued in tens of billions of dollars. Its spine will be a railway line linking China’s Yunnan province with both the city of Yangon and a new deep-sea port at Kyaukpyu on the Bay of Bengal. The corridor is part of the Belt and Road Initiative and is meant to include a 6,000-megawatt dam on the Irrawaddy river, as well as a new city for Chinese manufacturing close to Yangon. Dozens of projects will bind Myanmar closely to the markets of south-west China. More importantly for Beijing, they will form an artery between China’s hinterland and the Indian Ocean.
But there’s a catch: the corridor would traverse one of the world’s most complex and violent political landscapes. China and Myanmar share a 1,300-mile border and uplands between the border and the Irrawaddy Valley, an area about the size of Britain, are home to more than a dozen ethnic-based insurgent armies and hundreds of militia forces..."
Source/publisher:
"Financial Times" ( London)
Date of publication:
2020-01-13
Date of entry/update:
2020-01-14
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Burma's economic relations with China, China-Burma relations, Politics and Government - global and regional - general studies, strategies, theory
Language:
more
Sub-title:
According to Myanmar government sources, Xi is expected to visit Naypyitaw, January 17-18. During his trip, the two sides are expected to sign several agreements covering the construction of the Kyaukphyu Special Economic Zone (SEZ) and border economic cooperation zones, , road upgrade projects, promotion of trade relations among others.
Description:
"Chinese President Xi Jinping plans to visit Myanmar, a key neighbour of India this week, as Beijing seeks to ramp up support for BRI that will open connectivity in Bay of Bengal. The BRI projects in Myanmar has not received enough local support contrary to Chinese expectations.
This will first visit by a Chinese President to Myanmar in nearly two decades. India will keep a close watch on the visit.
According to Myanmar government sources, Xi is expected to visit Naypyitaw, January 17-18. During his trip, the two sides are expected to sign several agreements covering the construction of the Kyaukphyu Special Economic Zone (SEZ) and border economic cooperation zones, road upgrade projects, promotion of trade relations, and social and economic development assistance, according to Myanmar government sources.
Minister for Commerce U Than Myint told the reporters that Xi will visit Myanmar soon, saying that during his trip an agreement would be signed between the two countries in which China would ease restrictions on imports of products from Myanmar..."
Source/publisher:
"The Economic Times" (India)
Date of publication:
2020-01-13
Date of entry/update:
2020-01-14
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
China-Burma relations, Burma's economic relations with China, Other Special Economic Zones, “One Belt, One Road” initiative, Politics and Government - global and regional - general studies, strategies, theory, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Topic:
Dredging, Biodiversity, Dams, Fishing, Golden Triangle, Mekong River, China
Topic:
Dredging, Biodiversity, Dams, Fishing, Golden Triangle, Mekong River, China
Description:
"97 kilometres of rocks in Thai waters stand between Beijing and dominance over the Mekong, a mighty river that feeds millions as it threads south from the Tibetan plateau through five countries before emptying into the South China Sea.
China has long wanted to dredge the riverbed in northern Thailand to open passage for massive cargo ships – and potentially military vessels.
Ultimately, a link could be carved from Yunnan province thousands of kilometres south through the Mekong countries – Myanmar, Lao, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam.
There, the river emerges into the South China Sea, one of the world's busiest shipping lanes and the centrepiece of Beijing's trade and security strategy for its Asian neighbourhood.
Under the tagline "Shared River, Shared Future" China insists it seeks only the sustainable development of the river and to split the spoils of a trade and energy boom with its Mekong neighbours and their market of 240 million people.
But squeezed for value by the dams lacing China's portion of the river – and further downstream –the Mekong is already changing.
Fish stocks have collapsed say Thai fisherman, and nutrient-rich land in the Vietnamese delta is sinking as the sediment flow shrinks..."
Source/publisher:
"The ASEAN Post" (Malaysia)
Date of publication:
2020-01-13
Date of entry/update:
2020-01-13
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Burma's relations with its neighbours and the region, China-Burma relations, Biodiversity - global and regional, The impact of climate change on the global environment, Fisheries (including aquaculture and fishing)
Language:
more
Description:
"Chinese investments historically dominated Myanmar’s foreign direct investment landscape. Some projects are government-to-government initiatives while others were won through tenders.
Observers say Myanmar should diversify its partners in strategic sectors such as electricity for more sustainable development. Apart from financial matters, Myanmar’s government should take into account security issues,” said Daw Khin Khin Kyaw of the Institute for Strategy and Policy. She said that tenders should be conducted more transparently and not pushed through in a hurry.
Under Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s government, the two countries have looked into ways to work together through the China-Myanmar Economic Corridor scheme and moving ahead with the proposed Kyaukphyu port, the Yangon “New City” development and the Muse-Mandalay railway project.
Meanwhile, China Harbour Engineering Co, supported by China Communication and Construction Co as adviser, recently won a US$100 million tender to construct the Gote Hteik Bridge under a build, own and operate agreement..."
Source/publisher:
"Myanmar Times" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2020-01-13
Date of entry/update:
2020-01-13
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
more
Description:
"China and Myanmar have started filming a jointly-made documentary, entitled "Drink from the Same River", to reflect their natural bond. The project is part of an effort to mark the 70th anniversary of the establishment of bilateral diplomatic relations..."
Source/publisher:
"China Global Television Network (CGTN)" (China)
Date of publication:
2020-01-11
Date of entry/update:
2020-01-12
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
more
Description:
"The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), China’s scheme to boost global connectivity and market integration principally through the export of its infrastructure development capabilities, is redefining Southeast Asia’s economic and security environment. Although the BRI risks the usual pathologies of large-scale infrastructure development—corruption, environmental degradation, social instability, and debt—it also promises an array of economic benefits to the region’s diverse economies, not least by addressing the region’s massive infrastructure deficit and potentially jump-starting industrialization in less developed countries there.
Over the first five years of the initiative, more than $500 billion in BRI-related capital has flowed into Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and Vietnam alone. Much of this capital comes from Chinese sources for developing transportation links. These links, like the pan-Asia railway network, will connect to Chinese cities—one of the many ways the BRI is weaving the Chinese and regional economies and societies together..."
Source/publisher:
"Carnegie Endowment for International Peace" (Washington, D.C)
Date of publication:
2019-10-10
Date of entry/update:
2020-01-11
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
“One Belt, One Road” initiative, Burma/Myanmar's relationship with the Global Economy, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Topic:
Myitsone dam, Belt and Road Initiative, Aung San Suu Kyi, Xi Jinping, Kachin, Myanmar, China
Topic:
Myitsone dam, Belt and Road Initiative, Aung San Suu Kyi, Xi Jinping, Kachin, Myanmar, China
Description:
"Myanmar leader, Aung San Suu Kyi made a rare trip to a region bordering China days before President Xi Jinping is expected to push for controversial port and dam projects during a visit to the country.
Wearing traditional ethnic attire, Suu Kyi danced with a street procession on Friday in northern Kachin state's capital Myitkyina, a day after supporters cheered her arrival at the airport. She urged a crowd of thousands to "focus on the present" and called for peace in the remote region, where insurgents have clashed with the army over autonomy and resources.
She did not mention the China-backed Myitsone dam, a US$3.6 billion project halted in 2011 in the face of widespread opposition.
A proposal to reinstate the dam drew thousands of protesters onto the streets last year.
Myanmar is a vital piece of China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), Xi's US$1 trillion vision for maritime, rail and road projects across Asia, Africa and Europe.
During his two-day visit to the country starting 17 January, Xi and top Myanmar political and military leaders are expected to discuss the initiative, according to a Friday briefing by China's Vice Foreign Minister, Luo Zhaohui..."
Source/publisher:
"The ASEAN Post" (Malaysia)
Date of publication:
2020-01-11
Date of entry/update:
2020-01-11
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
“One Belt, One Road” initiative, About Aung San Suu Kyi, Burma's economic relations with China, China-Burma relations, Dams and other projects on the Irrawaddy and its tributories
Language:
more
Description:
"Chinese President Xi Jinping will visit Myanmar next week to boost ties and push investment projects, in a show of support for Aung San Suu Kyi’s government as it faces global condemnation over its treatment of the Rohingya Muslim minority.
Xi will begin the two-day trip on January 17, according to Luo Zhaohui, China’s vice-foreign minister. It will be the first state visit to Myanmar by a Chinese president since Jiang Zemin’s trip in 2001.
Luo said in a briefing on Friday that the countries would seek close economic and trade cooperation through Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative – Xi’s sprawling infrastructure and investment scheme spanning Asia, Africa, Europe and beyond. Chinese observers said Xi’s trip showed the importance of relations with Myanmar, which is strategically located and stands on the frontline of China’s geopolitical rivalry with the United States and other powers in the Asia-Pacific, such as India and Japan.
This year marks the 70th anniversary of China’s official ties with three Asian nations – Myanmar, Vietnam and Indonesia. Xu Liping, an expert at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, noted that Xi had chosen to go to Myanmar for his first overseas trip of the year, rather than the other two countries, both of which were at odds with Beijing over the South China Sea..."
Source/publisher:
"South China Morning Post" (Hong Kong)
Date of publication:
2020-01-10
Date of entry/update:
2020-01-11
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Burma's economic relations with China, Other Special Economic Zones, Border Trade with China, China-Burma relations, “One Belt, One Road” initiative
Language:
more
Description:
"Chinese President Xi Jinping will travel to Myanmar on January 17 for his first state visit of the year, Vice Foreign Minister Luo Zhaohui announced.
During the two-day trip, Xi will meet with the country’s defacto leader, State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi, and the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces, General Min Aung Hlaing, Luo said at a press conference on Friday. The trip, which coincides with the 70th anniversary of the establishment of China-Myanmar diplomatic relations, comes as Myanmar faces widespread condemnation over its treatment of its minority Muslim population in western Rakhine State. In an effort to develop already deepening ties, Luo said both sides will seek closer economic cooperation through China’s pan-Eurasian Belt and Road Initiative. He also said Xi plans to raise the repatriation of Rohingya refugees -- more than 730,000 of whom remain in squalid camps just across the border in Bangladesh following what the UN has termed genocidal acts by the military since 2017..." Last month, Suu Kyi appeared in front of the International Court of Justice at the Hague to defend the country’s military against accusations of genocide and crimes against humanity for the killing and rape of thousands of people.
“It is an issue between Myanmar and Bangladesh and indeed it is an old question,” Luo said. “At the request of the two countries China has played a constructive role in this regard, including trilateral talks on early repatriation.”..."
Source/publisher:
"Bloomberg News" (New York)
Date of publication:
2020-01-10
Date of entry/update:
2020-01-10
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
China-Burma relations, Arakan (Rakhine) State - reports etc. by date (latest first), International Court of Justice (ICJ) - Myanmar
Language:
more
Sub-title:
China is the top destination for victims of human trafficking in Myanmar, the police anti-human trafficking task force said.
Description:
"The task force said that out of the 239 anti-human trafficking cases recorded in 2019, 196 cases were forced marriage to Chinese nationals.
“There were 239 cases of trafficking in persons that we resolved nationwide. Of which, 196 cases had China as the destination,” said a member of the anti-human trafficking police force. Human trafficking incidents to China include 188 cases of forced marriage, two cases of prostitution, one case of forced adoption, three cases of forced labour, and 2 cases of surrogacy, police said.
Police said it filed charges on the 732 suspects in all the cases. The 239 cases comprised of 358 victims, 61 male and 297 female.
Aside from China, other destinations for the human trafficking cases are Thailand and Malaysia involving prostitution and forced labour. Yangon Region and Shan State has the most number of human trafficking incidents, recording 65 cases each,” the police officer said.
Other regions and states where human trafficking cases were reported were Mandalay, 28; Ayeyarwady, 28; Kachin, 25; Bago, 12; Mon, 4; Sagaing, 3; Kayin, 3; Nay Pyi Taw, 2; Tanintharyi, 2; Magwe, 1; and Chin, 1..."
Source/publisher:
"Myanmar Times" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2020-01-09
Date of entry/update:
2020-01-09
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Trafficking: global, regional and national reports, Trafficking: Burma-specific material, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Description:
"Chinese President Xi Jinping is expected to visit Myanmar late next week to discuss bilateral relations and to push for the speedier buildout of Chinese development projects under his massive Belt and Road Initiative, Myanmar analysts said Wednesday.
Neither the Myanmar nor Chinese government has released details of his Jan. 17-18 trip — Xi’s first visit to the Southeast Asian country since 2009 — on the occasion of the commemoration of the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the countries.
Myanmar analysts say Xi’s trip could bode well for the country’s faltering peace process and economic growth.
Beijing has encouraged rebel ethnic armies fighting Myanmar troops in border areas to meet with peace negotiators and agree to bilateral cease-fires with the government military.
China’s primary motive for getting involved in the peace process is driven by its interest in securing border areas so that infrastructure investments in Myanmar under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) are not jeopardized, analysts believe..."
Source/publisher:
"Radio Free Asia (RFA)" (USA)
Date of publication:
2020-01-08
Date of entry/update:
2020-01-09
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
“One Belt, One Road” initiative, Burma's economic relations with China, Other Special Economic Zones, China-Burma relations, Dams and other projects on the Irrawaddy and its tributories
Language:
more
Sub-title:
Government will open 33 new blocks for foreign bidding but investors are wary of regulatory risks
Description:
"Myanmar’s government is expected to announce major new bidding for natural gas exploration, including 15 offshore and 18 onshore blocks, in a bid to give the sluggish but potentially lucrative industry a much-needed capital infusion.
But while a new exploration agreement signed last month between Myanmar’s MPRL E&P Company, France’s Total and Australia’s Woodside Energy have given the sector a huge boost, investors are still wary about the industry’s policy direction.
Block A6, an Ayeyarwady Region joint venture in which Total holds 40%, Woodside 40% and MPRL E&P Co 20%, will be Myanmar’s first ultra-deepwater natural gas field project. It is also the only new gas development to be started under de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi’s nearly four-year-old administration.The field is estimated to contain 2-3 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, with a projected daily output of 400 million standard cubic feet. That represents more than a fifth of Myanmar’s existing daily output..."
Source/publisher:
"Asia Times" (Hong Kong)
Date of publication:
2020-01-08
Date of entry/update:
2020-01-08
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
more
Description:
"Myanmar has crafted a neutral foreign policy since its colonial years to avoid leaning too much on any foreign power, but a spiraling political crisis at home is pushing it toward China as a buffer against international outrage.
Western leaders say the poor but quickly developing Southeast Asian country is trying to wipe out Muslim Rohingya people near its border with Bangladesh. Myanmar’s state counselor, Aung San Suu Kyi, met Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi to discuss the issue days before going before the International Court of Justice on December 11.
Myanmar faces charges of genocide against the mainly Muslim Rohingya minority group in Rakhine state.
China had backed Myanmar in the U.N. Security Council when a military junta ruled the country before 2011. China is grappling with international criticism over perceived repression of ethnic Uighur people who oppose living under Beijing’s rule..."
Source/publisher:
"VOA" (Washington, D.C)
Date of publication:
2019-12-25
Date of entry/update:
2020-01-08
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
China-Burma relations, International Court of Justice (ICJ) - Myanmar, Politics and Government - global and regional - general studies, strategies, theory
Language:
more
Description:
"During one month of this fiscal year, the total trade value between Myanmar and China exceeded one billion US dollars with China’s imports reaching nearly 550 million US dollars, according to the Commerce Ministry.
In October of 2019-2020 FY, the total trade value between Myanmar and China amounted to 1006.768 million US dollars—456.869 million US dollars in export and 549.899 million US dollars in import.
Myanmar and China can promote trade and promotion through the establishment of business centers on both sides.
Union Minister for Commerce Dr. Than Myint said, “Myanmar and China will sign the MoU on the establishment of China-Myanmar border economic cooperation zones. The EOI will be invited for the projects for local entrepreneurs after the MoU signing. We basically plan to build it at Muse-Namkham border in Myanmar side. China wants to implement it at Muse border. We also plan to Kanpiketi in Kachin State and Hteinchone in China. Another proposed places are Laukkai, Linchan and Chinshwehaw. We have chosen three places for the project.”
Myanmar has already sent its view on the MoU signing for the economic zone project to China. The MoU can be signed after Myanmar receives the reply letter from China..."
Source/publisher:
"Eleven Media Group" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2020-01-08
Date of entry/update:
2020-01-08
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
more
Sub-title:
Andaman Sea, Belt and Road initiative, Bhamo, BRI, China-Myanmar Economic Corridor, China-Myanmar Irrawaddy Economic Belt, Chinese President Xi Jinping, CMEC, Indian Ocean, Irrawaddy Delta, Kachin State, Kunming, Lio Je customs gate, Longchuan, Mandalay, Muse, Ruili, the Irrawaddy River, Yangon, Yunnan, Zhangfeng
Description:
"Chinese think tanks based in Yunnan have been traveling back and forth between Yangon and the Chinese province’s capital, Kunming, since early 2018. But at times their itinerary has taken them beyondMyanmar’s economic hub.
They have traveled hundreds of miles conducting field investigations up and down the Irrawaddy River, from the north to the south of Myanmar, with high hopes of turning Myanmar’s lifeline into a vital trade and logistics link with China.
The strategic land and water transport route is expected to start in Kunming and run through Longchuan in Yunnan province to Bhamo in Kachin State, then to Yangon and the Indian Ocean. Developing the 2,161-km route from Kunming to Yangon could cost around 3.3 billion Chinese renminbi (700 billion kyats).
The Irrawaddy is the country’s most important waterway, flowing into the Andaman Sea through the Irrawaddy Delta..."
Source/publisher:
"The Irrawaddy" (Thailand)
Date of publication:
2019-12-30
Date of entry/update:
2020-01-07
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Dams and other projects on the Irrawaddy and its tributories, Dams and other projects on other rivers and their tributories, “One Belt, One Road” initiative, Burma's economic relations with China, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Description:
"Everything seemed to be going pretty well. Because of the recent protests and riots, I was nervous about traveling by myself to Hong Kong (population 7.400,000). The Hong Kong airport was closed to residents coming into the airport to pick up visiting passengers. But I found my way outside and met up with long-time friend and 40-year missionary in Hong Kong, Linda Smyth.
I stayed a few days in Hong Kong and then Linda and I boarded a plane to Yangon, Myanmar. We would stay there overnight and then go onto Myitkyina (population 200,000) where we would team teach at Faith Theological Seminary for two weeks.
When we landed in Yangon (population 7,500,000) we were directed to immigration. Linda went in one line and I went in another. There was absolutely no problem for me. I showed them my passport and then my visa. Quickly, I passed through..."
Source/publisher:
"The Havre Daily News" (Montana)
Date of publication:
2020-01-06
Date of entry/update:
2020-01-07
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
more
Sub-title:
Ironically, the solutions proposed by the BRI contradict China’s own development model.
Description:
"China’s top leaders have recently begun to tout China’s own development success as an example for others to replicate. Former Chinese Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs He Yafei, for example, has claimed that “the success of the ‘Chinese model’ … offers other developing countries an option different from the ‘American model’ for economic development.” In his address to the 19th Chinese Communist Party Congress in October 2017, President Xi Jinping argued that China’s successful development experience was “blazing a new trail for other developing countries to achieve modernization.”
China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), launched in 2013, is commonly viewed as the primary vehicle for promoting a China model of development. Encompassing 123 countries, the BRI commits China to provide $1 trillion in financing over the next decade for hundreds of infrastructure projects – roads, railways, ports, pipelines, electrical grids, and energy plants – designed to connect both land and maritime networks stretching from Southeast Asia to Europe..."
Source/publisher:
"The Diplomat" (Japan)
Date of publication:
2019-12-17
Date of entry/update:
2020-01-06
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
“One Belt, One Road” initiative, Burma's economic relations with China, Burma/Myanmar's relationship with the Global Economy, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Sub-title:
Part two of this series looks at American pressure on Chinese outward foreign direct investment.
Description:
"The United States has long been concerned about Chinese outward foreign direct investment (COFDI). Even so, U.S. angst has reached new heights during President Donald Trump’s tenure in office. Under his administration, the United States has launched a three-pronged war against COFDI. The first prong entails a harsher environment for COFDI in the United States. The second encompasses maneuvers against COFDI overseas. And the third involves steps to disrupt the progress of China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).
The first prong has been primarily evidenced by the expansion of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS)’s role in reviewing FDI. It has been reflected, too, by the 2018 passage of the Foreign Investment Risk Review Modernization Act (FIRMMA). Notably, FIRMMA changed the ownership standard triggering CFIUS reviews from 10 percent of voting shares to one focused more on decision-making abilities/control and also expanded CFIUS’s ambit to cover FDI in critical infrastructure and real estate near sensitive locations like military bases. Recently, Congress passed the 2019 National Defense Authorization Act, which hits COFDI in the United States directly by forbidding the use of federal funds to purchase rail cars and buses from Chinese-controlled firms. The White House has not publicly pilloried COFDI in the United States, but prominent members of the U.S. Congress continue to warn vociferously about its risks..."
Source/publisher:
"The Diplomat" (Japan)
Date of publication:
2019-01-03
Date of entry/update:
2020-01-06
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
“One Belt, One Road” initiative, Burma/Myanmar's relationship with the Global Economy, Burma's economic relations with China, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Sub-title:
This will be Xi Jinping’s first visit to Myanmar after more than a decade and is set for January 17 next
Description:
"The Myanmar government is setting the stage for the visit of Chinese President Xi Jinping to the country.
Xi Jinping is scheduled to discuss China-Myanmar relations and the progress of Chinese development projects, according to government and media reports.
This will be Xi Jinping’s first visit to Myanmar after more than a decade.
He last visited Myanmar in 2009.
The visit is said to be set for January 17.
Progress has been made with major projects that represent important development programmes for China.
Bilateral discussions have focused on China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), and the China-Myanmar Economic Corridor (CMEC), including the Kyaukphyu Special Economic Zone (SEZ), viewed as Beijing’s strategic window to the India Ocean.
But there are indications that Beijing will be pushing to speed up the projects.
In addition, there are other Chinese investment projects that are likely to come up for discussion, including the controversial Myitsone Dam project that was put on hold by the previous Myanmar government under President Thein Sein..."
Source/publisher:
"Northeast Now" (India)
Date of publication:
2020-01-06
Date of entry/update:
2020-01-06
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Burma's economic relations with China, Other Special Economic Zones, “One Belt, One Road” initiative, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Description:
"Might Myanmar-Taiwan relations get trickier due to the current presidential race in Taiwan and the incumbent Tsai Ing-wen’s relationship with Beijing regarding the “One China Policy”?
Both Taiwan and Myanmar have elections in 2020 and for both countries, the outcome is important for different reasons and yet there is an underlying theme of democracies in development.
What could impinge on their bilateral relations in their respective relations with China?The Myanmar government and its leader Aung San Suu Kyi are leaning towards China in part due to the international fallout from the “bad news” over the Rakhine crisis and the treatment of the Muslim Rohingya which has seen the Western embrace of Myanmar cool.
Beijing has been receptive in part because of its ambitious Belt and Road Initiative that sees Myanmar a crucial player in terms of communications, trade, and development, under the rubric of the China Myanmar Economic Corridor.
Myanmar’s friendship with China directly affects how Nay Pyi Taw deals with its relations with Taiwan, a territory that Beijing views as its own but one that is currently governed by an administration that seeks to distance itself from the Mainland.
Looking back at Taiwan, the presidential campaign is fiercely competitive. Incumbent Tsai, who is from Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) has led her main opponent Han Kuo-yu, the presidential candidate of Kuomingtang (KMT), by more than 30 points according to the latest poll by Apple Daily..."
Source/publisher:
"Mizzima" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2020-01-01
Date of entry/update:
2020-01-06
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
more
Description:
"When Chinese President Xi Jinping first unveiled the Belt and Road Initiative in 2013, it was heralded as one of the largest infrastructure development schemes in history.
But the globe-spanning strategy, involving up to US$8.5 trillion in investments spread across more than 80 economies, also poses a number of potential environmental impacts and could threaten biodiversity, which is of particular concern for China’s neighbours in Southeast Asia.
The region is a global biodiversity hotspot and home to numerous threatened species not found anywhere else in the world including charismatic megafauna such as tigers and Asian elephants. But much of China’s belt and road investment in Southeast Asia have come in the form of fossil fuel projects or natural resource extraction – both of which are likely to cause habitat loss, threaten wildlife and increase pollution..."
Source/publisher:
"South China Morning Post" (Hong Kong)
Date of publication:
2020-01-05
Date of entry/update:
2020-01-05
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
“One Belt, One Road” initiative, Burma's economic relations with China, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Description:
"The Heartland Foundation was formed in Lashio, northern Shan State, in 2012 and has become a leading environmental conservation organization. Recently, it formed a watchdog team to monitor China-backed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) projects, together with nearly 20 local civil society organizations. In particular, their efforts will focus on transparency issues, and the environmental and social impacts of the projects.
The team is preparing to raise awareness among locals of China-backed projects that are soon to be implemented across northern Shan State. The Irrawaddy spoke with U Aung Myo Htun, project officer of the Heartland Foundation in Lashio, about locals’ major concerns regarding the China-backed Muse-Mandalay railway project and its potential environmental and social impacts, and growing Chinese influence in northern Shan State. Nan Lwin: What do you think about the public consultations related to the Muse-Mandalay Railway?
U Aung Myo Htun: We have already collected a lot of data regarding the railway. Recently, the EIA [environmental impact assessment] company did so-called public consultations in some major cities. As far as we have observed, their techniques are not systematic. They have neglected the most important tasks of a standard EIA.
Moreover, those who were consulted do not broadly represent the affected local communities. They only invited a few elderly people and local government officials [from the General Administration Department] from each affected village tract..."
Source/publisher:
"The Irrawaddy" (Thailand) via "Global Voices" (Amsterdam)
Date of publication:
2019-12-26
Date of entry/update:
2020-01-05
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
“One Belt, One Road” initiative, Burma's economic relations with China, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Sub-title:
With Xi Jinping’s visit, China is on the verge of realizing a 10-year plan: gaining a back door to the Indian Ocean.
Description:
"A decade after Xi Jinping’s first visit to Myanmar in 2009, Naypyidaw is planning a banquet for another Xi visit, expected to be on January 17, 2020. As part of the preparation, shuttle diplomacy is already underway, with China’s State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi meeting with Myanmar State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi on December 9, 2019. The agenda is loud and clear: to speed up the construction of the projects within the China-Myanmar Economic Corridor (CMEC) and realization of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). In particular, speeding up the Kyaukphyu Special Economic Zone (SEZ), Beijing’s strategic window to the India Ocean, is on the short list.
Originating as one of 16 MoUs signed during then-Vice President Xi’s 2009 visit, the Kyaukphyu SEZ is the capstone of all China’s investments in Myanmar and was Beijing’s strategic offset in the Indian Ocean prior to the launch of the BRI. However, Chinese projects in Myanmar stalled after the suspension of controversial Myitsone Dam, which created uneasy relations with Beijing for the first time in 20 years and caused BRI capital injections to fall short of the hype. Kyaukphyu was not an exception. The project was significantly trimmed down with the fear of a debt trap..."
Source/publisher:
"The Diplomat" (Japan)
Date of publication:
2020-01-04
Date of entry/update:
2020-01-05
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
China-Burma relations, Other Special Economic Zones, Burma's economic relations with China
Language:
more
Sub-title:
The economic ventures of the Kayin State Border Guard Force have gained notoriety, but the group insists its businesses benefit the Karen people.
Description:
"COLONEL Saw Min Min Oo is the managing director of Chit Linn Myaing Co Ltd, a company owned by the Kayin Border Guard Force that oversees a growing stable of lucrative businesses. The ethnic Karen armed group’s readiness to partner with shadowy Chinese investors, and to undertake projects with seemingly little regard for Myanmar law, is deeply controversial. Its most audacious venture so far is the vast “new city” project next to the Kayin BGF’s headquarters of Shwe Kokko Myaing in Kayin State’s Myawaddy Township, popularly dubbed as a “Chinatown” because of the largely Chinese financing and workforce.
However, Min Min Oo insisted that the profits from these ventures don’t only accrue to the armed group, which is aligned to the Tatmadaw, but are shared with “the residents of our Karen land”.
Min Min Oo was a 55-year-old battalion commander in the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army nine years ago when it became a Border Guard Force under Tatmadaw command and he was appointed to run Chit Linn Myaing. The company’s board of directors is made up of officers from the BGF, he said.
When Frontier met Min Min Oo briefly in Yangon in October, he was dressed casually in a Karen blue-and-red longyi. He spoke limited Burmese, and a later phone interview with him was done mostly in the S’gaw Karen language.
The Kayin BGF, whose supreme commander is Colonel Saw Chit Thu, has about 6,000 troops and was formed in August 2010 with 12 battalions from the DKBA and one battalion from the Haungtharaw-based Karen Peace Front. It is one of several BGFs in borderland areas of Myanmar, which were formed at that time out of ethnic armed factions that had come to ally themselves with the Tatmadaw..."
Source/publisher:
"Frontier Myanmar" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2019-12-16
Date of entry/update:
2019-12-16
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Economy of Karen (Kayin) State, Business and the Military, Burma's economic relations with China, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Description:
"The year 2019 has been a fruitful year for China and the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in their concerted efforts to consolidate ties and forge a closer community with a shared future.
One year into the implementation of the landmark China-ASEAN Strategic Partnership Vision 2030, the two sides have built stronger economic and trade links, further synergized their development plans, and made major progress in managing differences. All these were achieved while the world is afflicted with rising protectionism and unilateralism that undermine globalization and development.
In fact, the China-ASEAN partnership has become one of the most dynamic partnerships that the bloc has with a dialogue partner, said Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, whose country is the rotating chair of ASEAN for 2019..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2019-12-15
Date of entry/update:
2019-12-16
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
ASEAN-Burma relations, China-Burma relations, Burma's economic relations with ASEAN, Burma's economic relations with China
Language:
more
Description:
" From traditional marionettes and wood carvings to handmade carpets depicting Bagan's renowned pagodas and stupas, Myanmar exhibitor Thet Thet Naing was more than proud to showcase her country's best handicrafts at a border trade fair in the southwestern Chinese city of Ruili.
Thet Thet Naing, a trade promotion officer from the Yadanarbon Trade Center in Mandalay, said she was attending the ongoing 18th China-Myanmar Border Economic and Trade Fair for the second time, and has brought more types of traditional handicrafts to impress Chinese visitors.
"We've received many orders for our customized carpets from Chinese hotels thanks to the fair in Ruili," she said. "I hope this year's fair will let more Chinese visitors and exhibitors know about Myanmar's cultural products."
Thet Thet Naing is among a large number of domestic and overseas exhibitors who have flocked to the fair to display more than 2,000 kinds of items at over 500 booths, representing a record high in the event's history. This year's fair runs from Dec. 10 to 16.
So far, a total of 24 projects with investment totaling nearly 20 billion yuan (2.8 billion U.S. dollars) have been signed at the fair. The projects cover tourism, agriculture, logistics, wood processing and other areas..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2019-12-14
Date of entry/update:
2019-12-15
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
more
Description:
"Red Cross Societies of China and Myanmar agreed on Friday to further strengthen cooperation in a meeting between officials from both sides.
Chen Zhu, vice president of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies and president of Red Cross Society of China, visited Myanmar and held a meeting with Tin Nyunt, acting president of Myanmar Red Cross Society.
The Red Cross Society of China will provide more assistance to Myanmar based on Myanmar's practical needs, and continue to support the country in carrying out community-centered health projects, said Chen.
Chen also acknowledged the achievements made by Myanmar Red Cross Society in areas including disaster relief, health service and community development, among others.
Tin Nyunt briefed Chen on the Myanmar Red Cross Society's works including the operation of mobile clinics in Rakhine state, and said Myanmar hoped that the two sides can further enhance cooperation..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2019-12-14
Date of entry/update:
2019-12-14
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
China-Burma relations, Public Health
Language:
more
Description:
"Peng Nian is an associate fellow at the National Institute for South China Sea Studies and a non-resident fellow at the Institute for China-America Studies. The article reflects the author's opinions and not necessarily the views of CGTN.
On December 7, Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi visited Myanmar and lent strong support to Myanmar's State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, who will head to the international court of justice (ICJ) in The Hague to defend Myanmar against accusations of genocide. Wang is the first foreign diplomat who came to Myanmar to show support to the democratic government and the Burmese military which have been criticized fiercely by the West since Aung San Suu Kyi's announcement of her appearance in the ICJ at the end of last month.
China has continued to provide necessary assistance to Myanmar to solve the Rohingya crisis in the past two years, mainly including the "three steps" proposal of the resolution of Rohingya crisis, and the diplomatic mediation on the agreement between Myanmar and Bangladesh on repatriating of Rohingya refugees who fled to Bangladesh..."
Source/publisher:
"China Global Television Network (CGTN)" (China)
Date of publication:
2019-12-10
Date of entry/update:
2019-12-14
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
China-Burma relations, “One Belt, One Road” initiative, Burma's economic relations with China
Language:
more
Description:
"The 18th China-Myanmar Border Economic and Trade Fair opened in the border city of Ruili in southwest China's Yunnan Province on Tuesday.
More than 500 booths will display items including electronics, agricultural products, food, garments, household appliances and agricultural machinery during the seven-day event.
Besides China and Myanmar, the fair has attracted exhibitors from nine other countries including Thailand, Vietnam and Russia.
Sideline activities including conferences and project signings will also be held to promote bilateral cooperation between China and Myanmar.
Yang Zhenwang, one of the exhibitors and the general manager of a Chinese agricultural machinery company, said the fair provided a platform to showcase their products and find overseas buyers..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2019-12-10
Date of entry/update:
2019-12-11
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
more
Description:
"China and Myanmar pledged on Saturday to strengthen communication and high-level exchanges, according to a meeting held between Myanmar's State Counsellor and Foreign Minister Aung San Suu Kyi and visiting Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi.
Wang said in light of the 70th anniversary of the establishment of their diplomatic relations next year, China and Myanmar should hold a series of celebrations, plan and prepare for high-level exchanges, comprehensively push forward cooperation in areas including economy, trade, people-to-people and cultural exchanges.
Wang said China and Myanmar should also carry forward the "Paukphaw" (fraternal) friendship, deepen the comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership and jointly build a community of shared future.
Wang said China is willing to promote China-Myanmar Economic Corridor from concept and plan into substantial implementation and build it into a flagship program of joint construction of the Belt and Road between the two countries.
Wang said infrastructure connectivity is framework of China-Myanmar Economic Corridor and the two sides should cooperate on pressing forward projects including Kyaukphyu Special Economic Zone and border economic cooperation zones.
Wang stressed that China always upholds democratization of international relations, advocates equality among countries, opposes interference in internal affairs of other countries, and disapproves of complicating bilateral issues by involving more parties..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2019-12-08
Date of entry/update:
2019-12-10
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Burma's economic relations with China, Border Trade with China, Chinese investment, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Description:
"Visiting Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with Myanmar's Commander-in-Chief of Defense Services Min Aung Hlaing here on Sunday, with both sides agreeing to strengthen economic cooperation and speed up peace process in northern Myanmar.
Lauding the Myanmar army as an important force in preserving the country's peace and stability as well as the friendship between China and Myanmar, Wang said the exchanges between the armed forces of the two countries represent an important part of "Paukphaw" (fraternal) friendship.
China is willing to take the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations next year as an opportunity to jointly push forward the construction of the Belt and Road Initiative and the China-Myanmar Economic Corridor, build a community of shared future with the Myanmar government and army, so as to push bilateral relations into a new era, he noted.
Wang said the peace and reconciliation process in northern Myanmar is significant to the country's social and economic development, hoping that Myanmar continues to stick to political dialogue and firmly carry on peace talks.
China will as always maintain close contact with Myanmar and play a constructive role in promoting the peace talks, Wang said. He called on all relevant parties to continue to show restraint, maintain the ceasefire and sign a ceasefire agreement at an early date.
The two sides should also strengthen cooperation in the control and management of border areas to ensure peace and stability at China-Myanmar border areas, he added..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2019-12-08
Date of entry/update:
2019-12-09
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Burma's economic relations with China, Chinese investment, China-Burma relations, Peace processes, ceasefires and ceasefire talks (websites, documents, reports and studies), Armed conflict and peace-building in Burma - theoretical, strategic and general
Language:
more
Description:
"Myanmar President U Win Myint on Saturday met with visiting Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Naypyidaw, the country's capital, with both sides pledging to strengthen high-level exchanges to push bilateral ties to a new high.
The Myanmar president expressed gratitude to China for its long-term support for Myanmar's sovereignty, dignity and socio-economic development.
He hoped that both sides will take the 70th anniversary of their diplomatic relations next year as an opportunity to consolidate and deepen mutual political trust, speed up the joint construction of the Belt and Road, comprehensively press forward the building of the China-Myanmar Economic Corridor. The president also hope to expand cooperation in such fields as economy and trade, education, health, and enhance cooperation and coordination in regional and international issues so as to further advance the comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership between the two countries. He also hoped that China would continue to support Myanmar in pressing forward the ongoing national reconciliation and peace process..."
Source/publisher:
"China Global Television Network (CGTN)" (China)
Date of publication:
2019-12-08
Date of entry/update:
2019-12-08
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
China-Burma relations, Other Special Economic Zones, Burma's economic relations with China, Border Trade with China, “One Belt, One Road” initiative
Language:
more
Sub-title:
For instance, the Kara-Balta oil refinery -- Kyrgyzstan's largest Chinese investment -- has faced significant problems with overcapacity in the recent years.
Description:
"Chinese infrastructure projects under its One Belt One Road (OBOR) initiatives in Central Asia, Pakistan and Myanmar are projected to lose money due to underutilisation and could potentially cause more harm than good, a prominent US think-tank said in a report on Thursday.
In its latest report on China, the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) said India has expressed significant hesitation toward the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) of China.
Leaders in New Delhi opted out of both the 2017 and 2019 Belt and Road Forums. In addition to being generally skeptical of the BRI, one specific major concern is building of the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) through Kashmir, it said. Economic considerations further complicate these concerns, the CSIS said in its report.
"BRI infrastructure projects in Central Asia, Pakistan and Myanmar are projected to lose money due to underutilisation and could potentially cause more harm than good, it said.
For instance, the Kara-Balta oil refinery -- Kyrgyzstan's largest Chinese investment -- has faced significant problems with overcapacity in the recent years..."
Source/publisher:
"News 18" (UK)
Date of publication:
2019-12-05
Date of entry/update:
2019-12-08
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
“One Belt, One Road” initiative, Burma's economic relations with China, Burma/Myanmar's relationship with the Global Economy, Burma/Myanmar's Foreign relations, general, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Description:
"Refugees from conflict in the northern part of Myanmar’s Shan state say they are worried that their land could be confiscated for Chinese-backed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI)-related infrastructure projects while they are unable to return because of fighting.
In 2011, armed conflict between Myanmar’s military and several insurgent groups in the area broke out in northern Shan. Fighting intensified in 2015 as the military began conflict with the Restoration Council of Shan State (RCSS).
The fighting has caused nearly 17,000 IDP to seek shelter in Namtu, Kutkai, Namhkam and Mong Yawng townships according to statistics kept by volunteer organizations. These IDP are worried because they don’t have the proper legal documentation for lands that they consider to be ancestral.
Seng Tu, an internally displaced person (IDP) living in the Kutkai refugee camp, and a member of the IDP farmland committee, told RFA’s Myanmar Service that fellow refugees are very concerned and want a freeze on the Chinese projects.
“The government is planning projects like reservoirs or agricultural zones on our land without our knowledge,” he said..."
Source/publisher:
"Radio Free Asia (RFA)" (USA)
Date of publication:
2019-12-06
Date of entry/update:
2019-12-07
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
“One Belt, One Road” initiative, Land research including land grabbing - global and regional, Burma's economic relations with China, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Sub-title:
The China-Myanmar Economic Corridor is as likely to fuel fighting as quell it
Description:
"Two years ago ethnic cleansing by the army forced 700,000 Muslim Rohingyas to flee Rakhine state, in western Myanmar, and seek sanctuary across the border in Bangladesh. On August 22nd, outside dismal refugee camps near Cox’s Bazar, buses and lorries lined up for the first of many envisaged repatriations taking Rohingyas back home. But there was a hitch: not a single Rohingya came forward.
Nor will many change their minds soon. Predominantly Buddhist Myanmar denies citizenship to the persecuted Rohingyas. The word means people from Rakhine, yet the government claims they are not Burmese but “Bengali” impostors. Having been refused formal id cards, it is impossible for many Rohingyas to prove that they used to live in Myanmar, one of the government’s conditions for repatriation. Besides, what is there to go back to? Their former villages have been razed. Rohingyas who remain in Rakhine now live in camps, too..."
Source/publisher:
"The Economist" (London)
Date of publication:
2019-08-29
Date of entry/update:
2019-12-06
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Burma's economic relations with China, China-Burma relations, Armed conflict in Burma - attacks on civilians
Language:
more
Description:
"Eight Myanmar children suffering from congenital heart disease will receive free treatment in Kunming, capital of southwest China's Yunnan Province.
They have arrived at Fuwai Yunnan Cardiovascular Hospital (FYCH) thanks to a rescue action plan under the Belt and Road Initiative.
The action plan was launched by the China Charity Federation, Yunnan Charity Federation and the FYCH in 2017 and has so far treated 27 Myanmar children.
A total of 15 patients will be treated free of charge this time, and seven of them will come to China for treatment later.
"The age of the eight patients ranges from 13 months to 12 years old," said Myint Myint Khine, senior medical superintendent of Yankin Children Hospital in Myanmar.
There is a long wait in hospitals for patients with heart disease in Myanmar, and they are happy to have the chance of treatment in China, she added.
"We can't afford the high cost of treatment. We are very grateful to China for providing us free treatment," said Aye Myat Thuzar, a patient's mother..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2019-12-06
Date of entry/update:
2019-12-06
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Public Health, Substance abuse, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Description:
"Hopes are high that China’s swelling middle-class travellers will be able to help steer Myanmar’s lagging tourism industry to recovery.
As many longhaul markets continue to shrink for Myanmar, China has emerged the front runner in arrivals. Yangon International Airport welcomed 80 per cent more Chinese visitors in the first eight months of 2019, based on the latest available figures. Sammy Samuels, managing director of Myanmar Shalom, said: “The Chinese are playing a key role in stimulating the tourism industry’s recovery.”
He added that the spike in visitors from China is helping fill hotels, with some starting to see full occupancy, while there have been reports of large groups taking hot air balloon trips in Bagan.
Pan Pacific Hotels Group’s two Yangon-based properties have been “encouraged” by the uptick in interest from China – now its strongest source market – amid slumping markets, said Neo Soon Hup, executive vice-president, operations.
An increase in charter flight connections to Chinese destinations will spur greater awareness of Myanmar as a travel destination, noted Khiri Travel Myanmar general manager Melissa Tan, and subsequently more “discerning segments will follow”.
But to truly tap into China’s potential as a visitor source market, Myanmar needs to promote experiences away from what can be had in China – and they need to be accessible, she added..."
Source/publisher:
"TTG Asia"
Date of publication:
2019-12-04
Date of entry/update:
2019-12-04
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
more
Description:
"Border and boundaries may separate people by countries, but they can’t diminish their desire for exchanges. In an elementary school in the southwestern Chinese city of Ruili, which shares a long border with Myanmar, children from both countries study together and receive equal treatment. As the school’s mission goes: education has no borders, and love shortens distances. Join CGTN’s Yang Jinghao to explore this special school near the border..."
Source/publisher:
"China Global Television Network (CGTN)" (China)
Date of publication:
2019-04-27
Date of entry/update:
2019-12-03
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
China-Burma relations, Educational resources and materials (Burma- and non-Burma-related), Society and Culture, global - general studies
Language:
more
Sub-title:
Myanmar pins hopes on brand new city to entice foreign investment and jobs, but must respond to concerns about transparency and sea-level rise
Description:
"It’s summer and Yangon is scorching hot. The hotel air-conditioning shuts down as it does several times a day due to electricity shortages. Shops and apartment buildings fire up growling diesel generators whose fumes mix poisonously with the exhaust of the second-hand Japanese cars streaming past.
I’m waiting for a ferry at Pansodan pier in the south of the city. Behind me is Yangon’s “Bund”, a row of colonial-era commercial and administrative buildings. In front is the Yangon river, whose waters flow gently, if a little murkily. On the other bank I can see the township of Dala. The view is flat and rural, a stark contrast to Yangon’s bustling cityscape.
Reaching Dala, I take a motorbike westwards, crossing the Twante canal via a steel bridge with an unpaved surface that makes the wheels skid. Farmers are transplanting rice in plots either side of the road. It’s countryside the whole way. ’ve come to see the area where a new city is being planned. Dubbed Myanmar’s Shenzhen, “New Yangon City” will cover 80km2 west of the Yangon river. Although only separated from the old city by the river, the area is relatively cut off. The only direct route is via the ferry to Dala..."
Source/publisher:
Chinadialogue (London/Beijing)
Date of publication:
2019-11-29
Date of entry/update:
2019-12-02
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
“One Belt, One Road” initiative, Burma's economic relations with China, Other Special Economic Zones, Chinese investment, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Description:
"The US economy ended 2018 with a whimper and a 1.1 per cent annual rate of gross domestic product growth, and then started the first quarter of 2019 with a bang – 3.1 per cent growth. The economy has since settled back to 2 per cent or less, where it seems likely to linger unless major shocks occur.
The world economy is slowing, too, but fears of an escalation in China-US trade tensions or a very disorderly Brexit have eased. Three cuts in interest rates by the US Federal Reserve, along with large liquidity injections to prevent disorderly short-term money markets, have helped keep the economy turning over, if not humming. Consumers keep spending, but business investment is sluggish. Monetary authorities have eased about as much as they can. Short and long interest rates in the United States are now zero in real terms – adjusted to remove the effects of inflation and reflect real borrowing costs and yield – and negative in nominal terms in much of Europe and Japan.
A major question mark is China. It has not resorted to extremely expansionary credit growth or very large government deficits. Its economy is officially growing at about 6 per cent a year, but many outside experts suggest that the actual growth rate is 2 to 3 percentage points lower than that..."
Source/publisher:
"South China Morning Post" (Hong Kong)
Date of publication:
2019-11-28
Date of entry/update:
2019-12-01
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Burma/Myanmar's relationship with the Global Economy, International Trade, China-Burma relations, Burma/Myanmar's Foreign relations, general
Language:
more
Sub-title:
We should not play down the geopolitical consequences of the Chinese-led globalization that BRI v.2.0 represents.
Description:
"Last week, China hosted the second Belt and Road Forum (BRF) for International Cooperation in Beijing. This was an occasion to take stock, as well as introduce course corrections into the process of unrolling the six-year old Belt and Road Initiative.
37 countries and 29 international organizations participated in the event, with notable presence of Russian President Putin, President Pinera of Chile, President Ueli Maurer of Switzerland, Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte of Italy and Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad. Prominent India’s neighbors who marked their presence over there were President Bindiya Bhandari of Nepal, Prime Minister Imran Khan of Pakistan, State Counsellor Aung San Su-Kyi of Myanmar. The UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres and managing director of the IMF Christine Lagarde also attended the event.
The first phase of BRI was an unfolding of China constructing connectivity hardware — railway lines, highways, ports and pipelines. The emphasis now is to improve the software — international cooperation, trade agreements, customs and taxation procedures and financial processes, which is to be linked with China’s overall plans for transforming its domestic economy to emphasize “quality construction” based on innovation and science and technology. On the other hand there is a conscious effort to connect it to a new phase of Chinese global policy which seeks to expand China’s geopolitical reach by assisting developing countries to overcome poverty and joblessness..."
Source/publisher:
"Observer Research Foundation (ORF)" (India)
Date of publication:
2019-05-02
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-30
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
“One Belt, One Road” initiative, Burma's economic relations with China, Burma/Myanmar's relationship with the Global Economy, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Description:
"A China Agritech and Engineering Machinery Brand Show kicked off in Myanmar's Yangon Friday.
Sponsored by the China's Ministry of Commerce, the three-day show will last until Sunday.
The show occupies 3,000 square meters' space with 76 booths displaying products of companies from Shandong, Yunnan, Guangdong and Zhejiang provinces.
The show is attached with agriculture-related forum.
Speaking at the opening of the show, Zhang Jing from Foreign Trade Development Bureau of the Chinese Ministry of Commerce, noted that China's cooperation with Myanmar in building "Belt and Road" and economic corridor in recent years was in steady progress.
China is not only Myanmar's largest investor but also a top trading partner representing the biggest export market, she said, placing emphasis on agricultural cooperation with Myanmar..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2019-11-22
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-30
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Burma's economic relations with China, Chinese investment, Border Trade with China, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Topic:
CHINA, MYANMAR, INSURGENCY, UNITED WA STATE ARMY, ARAKAN ARMY, TNLA, MANPADS, FN-6
Sub-title:
Ethnic rebels unexplained acquisition of Chinese-made FN-6 portable missiles is a political and military game-changer
Topic:
CHINA, MYANMAR, INSURGENCY, UNITED WA STATE ARMY, ARAKAN ARMY, TNLA, MANPADS, FN-6
Description:
"Myanmar’s seizure last week of a large cache of mostly Chinese weapons from a rebel camp sparked a brief and predictable flurry of nationalist outrage, underscoring as it did the shadowy role of neighboring China in fueling the nation’s many long-running ethnic conflicts.
But the real significance of the November 22 incident had less to do with the seized weaponry’s quantity or provenance and much more with unambiguous confirmation that insurgents in active hostilities with government forces, or Tatmadaw, are now fielding man-portable air defense systems, or MANPADS, weapons that militarily and politically constitute potential game-changers.
Amidst the stack of over 150 assault rifles, machine-guns, grenade launchers and nearly 80 sacks of explosives seized in a village in northeastern Shan state’s Namhsan township troops also retrieved in an apparent first a single MANPADS launcher identified as a Chinese-manufactured FN-6.
Abandoning the cache after an apparently brief clash with state forces were rebels of the ethnic Palaung Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA), which operates across northern Shan state and dominates the tea-growing hill country of Namhsan..."
Source/publisher:
"Asia Times" (Hong Kong)
Date of publication:
2019-11-28
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-29
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Peace processes, ceasefires and ceasefire talks (websites, documents, reports and studies), Armed conflict and peace-building in Burma - theoretical, strategic and general, China-Burma relations, Non-Ceasefire Groups
Language:
more
Sub-title:
Winding through many of the areas of conflict in Myanmar’s areas dominated by ethnic minorities, the China Myanmar Economic Corridor may spark off more fighting, writes Nicholas Lo
Description:
"A year ago, Myanmar and China signed an agreement to establish the China-Myanmar Economic Corridor (CMEC), as part of China’s Belt and Road global infrastructure initiative. Today, that corridor is mired in conflict between the Myanmar military and ethnic armed groups.
Stretching 1,700 kilometres, the CMEC’s network of new railways, trade zones and other major infrastructure projects is meant to mesh the comparatively impoverished economy of Myanmar with its wealthier neighbour’s landlocked southern province of Yunnan. However, ongoing armed conflict and lingering resentment against Chinese investments mean the future of the CMEC is uncertain.
Since its transition to semi-civilian rule in 2011, Myanmar has proven to be more cautious with Chinese investments than other developing countries. In August 2018, Myanmar officials negotiated an 80% cost reduction to the proposed Kyaukphyu deep-sea port, trimming the project from over USD 7 billion to USD 1.3 billion, Reuters reported. The Myanmar side, led by deputy finance minister Set Aung, baulked at the risk of an excessive debt burden.
This mindset has extended to new CMEC deals, where Myanmar officials have successfully set out conditions for major Chinese investments, insisting on the right to open tenders and the ability to seek international financing. So far, out of 38 projects proposed by China for the CMEC, Myanmar’s government has approved nine..."
Source/publisher:
"The Third Pole"
Date of publication:
2019-11-26
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-27
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
“One Belt, One Road” initiative, Burma's economic relations with China, Chinese investment, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Sub-title:
Economic powerhouse is investing billions of dollars in infrastructure projects around the world
Description:
"This story is part of a CBC News series exploring China's expanding influence around the world and how Canada and other countries are contending with China's growing power.
Back in 2013, when the U.S. and many other countries were still recovering from the Great Recession, Chinese President Xi Jinping announced perhaps the most transparently ambitious foreign policy of the new century: the Belt and Road Initiative.
The name is a nod to the Silk Road, the ancient network of trade routes that connected China with the Roman Empire and many societies in between.
The modern version envisioned by Xi goes even further.
China is financing hundreds of billions of dollars' worth of infrastructure projects — including ports, roads, bridges, railways, power plants, telecommunications networks and much more — in partnering countries throughout Asia, Africa, Europe and beyond.
The purpose, China says, is to accelerate and enhance development and trade in order to create new markets and opportunities for China and its partners..."
Source/publisher:
"CBC news" (Toronto)
Date of publication:
2019-11-27
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-27
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
“One Belt, One Road” initiative, Burma/Myanmar's relationship with the Global Economy, Burma's economic relations with China, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Description:
"The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) provides momentum for regional economic integration and connectivity, helping China and ASEAN forge a closer community of shared future, said Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister Hor Nam Hong.
Hor made the remarks Saturday at the opening ceremony of the 16th China-ASEAN Expo themed "Building the Belt & Road, Realizing Our Vision for a Community of Shared Future."
The deputy vice prime minister envisioned that the China-ASEAN strategic partnership and the BRI will further deepen the cooperation between the two sides in the joint pursuit of shared prosperity.
Statistics show that China has signed cooperation agreements with more than 130 countries across the globe and 30 international organizations on jointly building the Belt and Road, benefiting people of the involved nations.
Highlighting regional economic cooperation, this year's China-ASEAN expo is expected to lift the practical and comprehensive cooperation between China, ASEAN and other countries participating in the BRI to new heights..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2019-09-23
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-26
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
“One Belt, One Road” initiative, Burma's economic relations with ASEAN, Burma/Myanmar's relationship with the Global Economy, Burma's economic relations with China, ASEAN-Burma relations, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Sub-title:
Some projects will succeed. Others will fail. And in the end, China will likely find the political gain is quite mixed.
Description:
"China’s ambitious Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) continues to attract much comment. To some, it is a threat – proof that China’s aim is to extend Chinese global influence. To others, it is a useful contribution to global capital flows. Where does the balance lie between these two views? Three issues, particularly, are worth considering: the size of the BRI program; the place of BRI in capital flows to developing countries; and the likely political gains to China from supporting the program.
First, in reality, it seems impossible to obtain much meaningful information on the true size of the BRI. But what does is clear is that many of the extravagant statements about likely spending through the program are wildly unreliable. There are references to spending plans of a trillion dollars (or so) over periods of ten years or more in various reports of “commitments” made in various Memorandums of Understanding (MOUs). But vague references of this sort of thing are virtually meaningless in economic terms. Commitments are not the same thing as project approvals. Many “commitments in principle” never come to anything. In any case, MOUs are a dime-a-dozen after ministerial meetings around the world..."
Source/publisher:
"The Interpreter"
Date of publication:
2019-07-10
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-26
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
“One Belt, One Road” initiative, Burma's economic relations with China, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Description:
"Business circles from Myanmar and China inked cooperation agreements during Myanmar (Lashio)- China(Lincang) border economic and trade fair which kicked off in Lashio, northern part of Myanmar's Shan state on Thursday.
The cooperation agreements were signed between five organizations and 16 companies from the two countries on Friday.
Deputy Minister Commerce U Aung Htoo expressed appreciation to Chinese economic cooperation with Myanmar and believed that such cooperation would be a great support for Myanmar entrepreneurs.
The forum for entrepreneurs of the two countries was also held with 100 businessmen in attendance at the first trade fair between Myanmar's Lashio and China's Lincang, South China's Yunnan province.
Yang Haodong, secretary of the Lincang Municipal Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, expressed belief that the cooperation between the two countries' entrepreneurs would lead to more convenient bilateral trade flow and be more effective in implementing new Chinshwehaw trade route..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2019-11-23
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-24
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
more
Description:
"China’s ambitious Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) continues to draw criticism and disapproval. Its sceptics brand it as China’s Marshall Plan or as a ‘neo-imperial project’. To ensure the initiative’s success, China should heed some of these concerns and take steps to improve the implementation of BRI-related projects. Doing so is particularly important in ASEAN — a region that stands to greatly benefit from BRI investment, if done right. ASEAN is the world’s sixth-largest economy with a total GDP of more than US$2.5 trillion. Economies across the region are growing steadily at an average annual rate of around 5 per cent. Sustaining this growth requires the region to meet its growing infrastructure needs, which are estimated to amount to US$2.8 trillion from 2016 to 2030.
China’s BRI is important for ASEAN because it can help to fund and meet the region’s infrastructure needs. It also supports the success of the ASEAN Community Vision 2025 and Master Plan on ASEAN Connectivity 2025 initiatives.
A major BRI–ASEAN project is the Pan-Asia Railway Network designed to connect China with Southeast Asia. Its three main railway routes — the eastern, central and western routes — all begin in Kunming, China. The eastern route has a total estimated cost of US$600 million and will pass through Vietnam and Cambodia into Thailand. The central route will pass through Laos, Thailand and Malaysia into Singapore. As a high-speed railway project, it is the most expensive route with an estimated cost of more than US$33 billion. The western route will pass through Myanmar into Thailand and is estimated to cost US$2 billion..."
Source/publisher:
"East Asia Forum" (Australia)
Date of publication:
2019-01-26
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-23
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
“One Belt, One Road” initiative, Burma's economic relations with ASEAN, Burma/Myanmar's relationship with the Global Economy, Burma's economic relations with China, ASEAN-Burma relations, China-Burma relations
Language:
Format :
pdf
Size:
36.6 KB (3 pages)
more
Description:
"n the northern part of Myanmar next to the Chinese border, there lies a Wa state where the way of life resembles that across the border in China. The yuan has become the main currency, Chinese language is widely spoken, and mobile telephones are connected to Chinese networks. It is also where the United Wa State Party (UWSA), the largest non-state armed group in the country, is located. This April marked the 30th anniversary of an internal coup within the Communist Party of Burma (CPB) by the Wa, with a three-day military parade. During the parade, Bao Youxiang, the President of Wa, even vowed, “We will not hesitate to sacrifice our lives and achieve the goal of being an autonomous state.”
This article will discuss the reasons behind such a phenomenon in Wa state, the way and the extent of China’s intervention, and also the challenges faced by the Myanmar government..."
Source/publisher:
"Eurasia Review"
Date of publication:
2019-11-23
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-23
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
more
Description:
"China’s power in the Asia-Pacific is growing according to assessments of military strength. Independent analysts predict that the country is already close to becoming an Asian superpower on par with the United States. A new wave of involvement in overseas port acquisition and construction has pointed to the possibility of basing rights and power projection as far as Africa. These more recent developments raise crucial questions: has China’s security concept already reached a post-Asia-Pacific stage?
If so, what are the consequences for other regions where Beijing’s overseas ambitions come up against preexisting regional balance-of-power dynamics and security frameworks? This article looks at how and why China’s strategic vision has shifted westward, and how traditional security and risk management concerns are driving efforts to link continental states beyond the immediate periphery – focusing first on Bangladesh – with an existing cluster of interests and influence in Southeast Asia..."
Source/publisher:
"Global Risk Insights" (Canada)
Date of publication:
2019-07-21
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-23
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
“One Belt, One Road” initiative, Burma/Myanmar's relationship with the Global Economy, Burma's economic relations with China, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Description:
"For the Mekong countries, including Thailand, Laos, Myanmar, Cambodia and Vietnam, 2018 was a big year both domestically and regionally. Key developments from last year will inevitably continue to shape the politics of the region in 2019. In terms of domestic affairs, the most worrying trend is the consolidation of autocratic power in almost all countries. In Vietnam, the sudden death of president Tran Dai Quang in September 2018 created a huge power vacuum, which was filled by Vietnamese Communist Party chief Nguyen Phu Trong. By merging the two most powerful positions in Vietnamese politics, he has become the strongest Vietnamese leader since the death of Ho Chi Minh in 1969, edging the communist state towards the Chinese model of centralised rule.
Cambodia, in theory a multi-party democracy, has practically become a one-party regime after a sham election that saw Prime Minister Hun Sen’s Cambodian People’s Party win all parliamentary seats in July 2018. He is now one of the world’s longest-serving heads of government, having held the premiership for 33 years since 1985.
Things are no better in Thailand. Four years after seizing power, the military junta has made — and broken — five promises to hold a general election to establish a civilian government. Even if the sixth promise is fulfilled in February 2019, it will be difficult to see swift change, as the junta will exploit all means available to dominate the electoral process..."
Source/publisher:
"East Asia Forum" (Australia)
Date of publication:
2019-02-07
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-23
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
ASEAN-Burma relations, China-Burma relations, Politics and Government - global and regional - general studies, strategies, theory
Language:
Format :
pdf
Size:
44.31 KB (4 pages)
more
Description:
"On the western bank of the muddy Hlaing River, development and prosperity is a distant view. It can be seen across the expanse of water in the rising apartment blocks, office buildings and grinding industry.
Over there is Yangon proper, a city of some six million people and the economic hub of Myanmar. Over here is a simpler life of small villages, struggling rice fields and roads as bumpy as local prospects.
But both the landscape and the outlook of the population on the western bank are set for dramatic change in the coming years. A mega project is planned on this land, a new metropolis to be powered by Chinese money.
The New Yangon City project is an ambitious and controversial idea in its early conception days. The grand vision of Yangon’s regional government, which created the New Yangon City Development Company (NYDC) in March last year to partner with a Chinese state investment firm, is to build a brand new smart and “liveable” city with a population of 1.2 million people by 2050..."
Source/publisher:
"CNA" ( Singapore)
Date of publication:
2019-11-23
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-23
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Burma's economic relations with China, Chinese investment, “One Belt, One Road” initiative, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Description:
"The Arakan Army (AA)/United League of Arakan (ULA), has said it welcomes foreign investors, including Chinese investment in large-scale infrastructure projects under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), in western Myanmar’s underdeveloped Rakhine state, where it is fighting the national military for greater autonomy and self-determination, RFA reported.
The group’s political wing, the United League of Arakan (ULA), said in a statement dated July 18 that it approved of governments and institutions that want to establish mutually beneficial projects such as the China-based deep sea port and Kyaukphyu Special Economic Zone under the BRI.
The ULA is “prepared to work hand in hand with the organizations and individuals working for multi-sectoral development,” the statement said..."
Source/publisher:
"Mizzima" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2019-07-24
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-22
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Arakan (Rakhine) State - reports etc. by date (latest first), Chinese investment, Burma's economic relations with China, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Description:
"Despite fading foreign direct investment in China amid the Sino-US trade war, Bangkok Bank (BBL) says its international banking business is thriving from a shift towards Asean.
The bank's international banking business, covering nine of the 10 Asean nations, shows positive signs, mainly due to higher investment in Asean from regional business operators and foreigners, said a source familiar with the issue.
Large Thai and regional investors have shifted investment away from China and towards Asean, driven by trade tensions, and the fast-growing economies of the bloc are providing greater business opportunities, the source said.
The mainland's intense competition in all areas, including funding, market, technology and people, is compelling Thai business operators to shun China and shift to regional markets..."
Source/publisher:
"Bangkok Post" (Thailand)
Date of publication:
2019-11-21
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-22
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
ASEAN-Burma relations, China-Burma relations, Burma's economic relations with ASEAN, Burma/Myanmar's relationship with the Global Economy
Language:
more
Sub-title:
China’s endeavor to strengthen its influence in Myanmar’s northernmost state of Kachin has caused spreading discord in the region.
Description:
"Myanmar’s dependence on China is easy to see. Brightly colored Chinese company signs and billboards are prominent, Chinese-looking businessmen stroll along the streets of Yangon, Myanmar’s largest city, and Chinese tourists seem to be everywhere. While I was visiting, a Chinese crew happened to be filming in Yangon, disrupting traffic and causing general confusion. Native residents looked resigned, their expressions appearing to say that there was nothing they could do.
Where Chinese influence is most pervasive, however, is not in the city but in a region populated by ethnic minorities far from Yangon. I went to see for myself, traveling by plane from Yangon via Mandalay to make my way to Myitkyina in Myanmar’s northernmost state of Kachin which shares a long border with China’s Yunnan Province. There, I found China’s local activities a disturbing reality for the people who live there..."
Source/publisher:
nippon.com (Japan)
Date of publication:
2019-07-29
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-22
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Burma's economic relations with China, Burma's economic relations with Japan, China-Burma relations, Japan-Burma relations
Language:
more
Sub-title:
While Western investors have shied away due to human rights violations related to the northern Rakhine crisis, Chinese and Japanese investors showed visible interest in the state at the Rakhine Investment Fair on February 22.
Description:
"State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, who attended the fair, said economic development could be the answer to much of Rakhine State’s woes, where communal conflict in recent years has turned away investors and damaged growth.
With a political solution difficult to achieve under the circumstances, the government believes that developing the state’s economy may be one way of lessening the conflict between communities and eventually ending it.
Rakhine Chief Minister U Nyi Pu said at the fair that economic development supported by local and foreign investors was “the best solution for sustainable peace and development in the state”.
More than 700,000 Muslims fled northern Rakhine to Bangladesh since late 2017 after a crackdown by the military, which followed attacks by the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army. Almost all of those who fled are still living in border refugee camps.
In light of the alleged atrocities in the region, the UN-mandated Fact-finding Mission on Myanmar (UNFFM) recommended that companies ensure their operations are compliant with the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs) when conducting business in Rakhine..."
Source/publisher:
"Myanmar Times"
Date of publication:
2019-03-03
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-22
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Chinese investment, Japanese investment, Burma's economic relations with Japan, Burma's economic relations with China, China-Burma relations, Japan-Burma relations
Language:
more
Description:
"Bangladesh and China have launched a new platform, the Bangladesh-China Silk Road Forum, in Bangladeshi capital Dhaka, focusing on lasting links under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) between the two countries for mutual benefit.
The event was attended by political leadership, high-ranking officials from the private and public sector, community representatives and the members of the business sector and media.
Bangladesh prime minister's foreign affairs adviser Gowher Rizvi and Chinese Ambassador to Bangladesh Zhang Zuo among others, spoke at the launching ceremony Saturday.
"I want truly to felicitate the launch of Bangladesh-China Silk Road Forum," said Rizvi. "Congratulate and thank you for initiative to establish the forum."
"The BRI is not only one of the important initiatives of our time but it is also very needful in fixing our (Bangladesh development) priorities," he said.
According to the advisor, Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in the last 10 years has been emphasizing the importance of connectivity.
She sees connectivity as mechanisms or tools through which Bangladesh's prosperity and stability can be rebuilt, he added..."
Source/publisher:
"Global Times" (China) via "Mizzima" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2019-05-21
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-21
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
“One Belt, One Road” initiative, Burma's economic relations with China, Burma/Myanmar's relationship with the Global Economy, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Description:
"The euphoria about the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) in Indonesia and elsewhere in South and Southeast Asia (SEA) has been felt since 2017, particularly following the country’s participation in the BRI Summit in Beijing that year, where Indonesia (along with other SAARC and ASEAN member states) was expected to receive massive investments from China to support several infrastructure projects.
This year, the debates concerning the BRI are again becoming prevalent after Indonesia’s Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs Luhut Binsar Panjaitan as Indonesia’s representative signed 28 BRI projects last April. Among the various debated subjects is the growing concern about the real nature of the BRI. Is that a Chinese developmental initiative or a geopolitical instrument that uses debt-trap as a tool to bring targeted countries into the desired terms..."
Source/publisher:
"Modern Diplomacy"
Date of publication:
2019-11-19
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-21
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
“One Belt, One Road” initiative, Burma/Myanmar's relationship with the Global Economy, Burma's economic relations with China, Australia-Burma relations, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Description:
"China has provided humanitarian assistance in health and educational development for people in Myanmar's Kachin state.
The Chinese Embassy in Myanmar handed over the commodities and equipment to respective local organizations in Myitkyina, capital of Kachin state, on Wednesday.
Speaking at the donation ceremony, Chinese Ambassador Chen Hai said that humanitarian assistance is part of the cooperation plan on China-Myanmar Economic Corridor and hoped that such assistance from China would be effective for the development of people in Kachin state.
Chen also pledged continued assistance to Myanmar and further cooperation to assist Myanmar to achieve eternal peace in northern part of the country including Kachin state.
Under the humanitarian assistance program, hospital and medical equipment is donated to Kachin state's General Hospital, Heath and Treatment Department and Free Medical Treatment Foundation..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2019-11-21
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-21
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
China-Burma relations, Roots and Resources - global and regional experience and analysis, Humanitarian assistance - emergencies
Language:
more
Description:
"Chinese President Xi Jinping has just returned from Brazil where he attended the annual meeting of the BRICS nations in Brasilia. With the Presidents and Prime Ministers from India, Russia, and South Africa also all attending, the Brasilia Summit’s Declaration stated that the BRICS bloc had expressed common goals of “expanding trade and innovation”.
There are significant global trade issues to examine here: most notably exactly how such trade can be increased. At present, the BRICS countries represent over 3.1 billion people, or about 41 percent of the world population.
As of 2018, these five nations have a combined nominal GDP of US$18.6 trillion, about 23.2 percent of the global total, a combined GDP (PPP) of around US$40.55 trillion (32 percent of world’s GDP PPP) and an estimated US$4.46 trillion in combined foreign reserves. The IMF has projected that the BRICS nations will account for over 50 percent of global GDP by 2030. Achieving that growth will require some planning and innovation on the part of the countries concerned. This can be reasonably expected to include advancing free trade agreements. To this end: China is a lead player in the Belt and Road Initiative, Brazil with its influence and membership in Mercosur is a leader in the South American region, Russia has a similar role in the development of the Eurasian Economic Union, India has a prominent role within the South Asia Free Trade Area (SAFTA), while South Africa is a major strategic partner in the Southern African Customs Union (SACU)..."
Source/publisher:
"China Briefing" (China)
Date of publication:
2019-11-20
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-21
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Burma/Myanmar's relationship with the Global Economy, Burma's economic relations with China, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Sub-title:
China's state-owned CITIC Construction group, the Myanmar Rice Federation and Myanmar Agribusiness Public Corporation signed a cooperation agreement for the construction of agricultural centres in three key regions.
Description:
"The US$130 million (K197 billion) deal signed in Nay Pyi Taw last week will construct centres in Yangon, Ayeyarwady, Mandalay and Rakhine.
“The project intends to upgrade the quality of agricultural produce by providing services such as dryers and warehouses for post-harvest storage,” said U Ye Min Aung, chair of the federation.
It also plans to go into partnered cultivation, to support farmers in the marketing of high-quality products, and to arrange for systematic market access, he added.
The centres will be set up in Twante township in Yangon, Kyaiklat township in Ayeyarwady, Madaya township in Mandalay, and Kyauktaw township in Rakhine.
Details such the investment ratio and profit-sharing will be decided after further discussions, said U Myint Lwin of the federation..."
Source/publisher:
"Myanmar Times" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2019-11-20
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-20
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Agriculture in Burma/Myanmar: general and research, Sustainable agriculture - global and regional, Burma's economic relations with China, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Description:
"The Myanmar-China border trade fair is scheduled to be held in Lashio, the largest city in Myanmar's northern Shan state, for the first time, according to the Ministry of Commerce Monday.
The four-day border trade fair, jointly organized by Myanmar's commerce ministry and China's Lincang city government, will be held on Nov. 21-24.
Companies from Lincang selling electrical appliances and consumer products will exhibit their products, while Myanmar's finished forestry products, food, tea leaves and agricultural products will be showcased at the event, which will feature 132 stalls from the two countries.
According to the organizers, the trade fair is aimed at boosting trade relations between Lashio city of Myanmar and Lincang city of southwest China's Yunnan province, strengthening interaction between traders, creating more jobs for local residents and promoting tourism..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2019-11-18
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-20
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
more
Title: Potential Environmental and Social Impacts of Chinese Mega-Projects in Myanmar Raise Concerns
Topic:
air, backbone projects, Bangladesh-China-India-Myanmar, BCIM, Belt and Road initiative, biodiversity, BRI, China, China Railway Eryuan Engineering Group, China-Myanmar Economic Corridor, CITIC, Climate Change, CMEC, CNICO, Development, economic benefit, endangered species, Environment, Environmental and Social Impact Assessment, ESIA, Forests, Global Warming, growth, Infrastructure, Investment, Irrawaddy River, Kyaukphyu, land grabbing, Letpadaung Taung copper mine, mega projects, Muse-Mandalay Railway, Natural Resources, noise pollution, oil and gas pipeline, Pollution, port, Protest, Railway, sea, SEZ, social impact, Special Economic Zone, Strategic Environmental Assessment, Wanbao Mining Company, Water
Topic:
air, backbone projects, Bangladesh-China-India-Myanmar, BCIM, Belt and Road initiative, biodiversity, BRI, China, China Railway Eryuan Engineering Group, China-Myanmar Economic Corridor, CITIC, Climate Change, CMEC, CNICO, Development, economic benefit, endangered species, Environment, Environmental and Social Impact Assessment, ESIA, Forests, Global Warming, growth, Infrastructure, Investment, Irrawaddy River, Kyaukphyu, land grabbing, Letpadaung Taung copper mine, mega projects, Muse-Mandalay Railway, Natural Resources, noise pollution, oil and gas pipeline, Pollution, port, Protest, Railway, sea, SEZ, social impact, Special Economic Zone, Strategic Environmental Assessment, Wanbao Mining Company, Water
Description:
"With more and more Chinese investment flowing into the country, many key government officials are speaking out in support of the projects, which range from a high-speed railway line to special economic zones to seaports. At several local investment forums, they have voiced the view that China’s grand infrastructure projects will bring economic development to Myanmar and economic benefits to local people, while boosting the country’s strategic importance in the region.
But what they have so far failed to mention is the possible environmental and social impacts of the projects on host communities. They rarely talk about how the projects threaten biodiversity, protected forests and natural water resources. Faced with this official silence, experts and activists worry aloud about land confiscations, influxes of migrants, loss of livelihoods and air, water and noise pollution in the project areas.
Massive project-related activities are now being implemented under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) framework in Myanmar, following the signing last year of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with China to establish the China-Myanmar Economic Corridor (CMEC)..."
Source/publisher:
"The Irrawaddy" (Thailand)
Date of publication:
2019-11-19
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-20
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Other Special Economic Zones, Burma's economic relations with China, Chinese investment, China-Burma relations, “One Belt, One Road” initiative, Climate Change - Migration Burma/Myanmar, The impact of climate change on the environment of Burma/Myanmar
Language:
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Sub-title:
Beijing has leveraged its Belt and Road Initiative to gain the upper hand on the Mekong River while the US and Japan’s competing initiatives wash away
Description:
"When the state tabloid China Daily ran a paid advertisement in the New York Times extolling the virtues of Beijing’s proliferating dams in Laos, the piece sparked a new cold war controversy.
Entitled “Employment on hydroelectric project in Laos delivers better lives”, the piece stated that a proposed cascade of dams on the Nam Ou River will enable well-paid local workers to buy pickup trucks and provide the poor country with badly needed electricity. The paid placement also noted the Nam Ou cascade “is a key part of the China-led Belt and Road Initiative and is the first project undertaken by a Chinese-invested company to cover an entire river.”
With its rising regional clout and massive state resources, China has recently gained a clear upper hand vis-à-vis the United States and Japan in determining the crucial waterway’s future development and direction.
It’s an economics-over-environment vision that downstream nations have often opposed but without recourse or resources to fight back there is little they can do as US and Japan-backed counter-initiatives for the river wash away into irrelevance..."
Source/publisher:
"Asia Times" (Hong Kong)
Date of publication:
2019-06-24
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-19
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
China-Burma relations, “One Belt, One Road” initiative, Burma/Myanmar's relationship with the Global Economy, Violation of environmental and human rights
Language:
more
Sub-title:
Chinese built high-speed railway expected to transform southern neighbor and boost economy
Description:
"The friendship between China and Laos is blossoming, according to an editorial in the Vientiane Times and quoted by Xinhua on April 22. Laos is a partner in China’s Belt and Road Initiative and the most significant project in that relationship is the construction of a high-speed railroad from the Chinese border to the Laotian capital Vientiane.
According to Xinhua, Laotian President Bounnhang Vorachit recently visited one of the many construction sites and described the railroad as a critical project that would transform Laos from being a landlocked country into a “land-linked” one.
The railroad will “boost economic growth,” the report said, and recognize business opportunities in Laos. “Several Chinese banks have expanded their operations here in Laos.”
The number of Chinese tourists in Laos is also increasing and has become a vital source of income for Laos. The country expects to receive more than a million Chinese visitors this year..."
Source/publisher:
"Asia Times" (Hong Kong)
Date of publication:
2019-04-24
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-19
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Burma/Myanmar's relationship with the Global Economy, “One Belt, One Road” initiative, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Description:
"In the northern part of Myanmar next to the Chinese border, there lies a Wa state where the way of life resembles that across the border in China. The yuan has become the main currency, Chinese language is widely spoken, and mobile telephones are connected to Chinese networks. It is also where the United Wa State Party (UWSA), the largest non-state armed group in the country, is located. This April marked the 30th anniversary of an internal coup within the Communist Party of Burma (CPB) by the Wa, with a three-day military parade. During the parade, Bao Youxiang, the President of Wa, even vowed, “We will not hesitate to sacrifice our lives and achieve the goal of being an autonomous state.”
This article will discuss the reasons behind such a phenomenon in Wa state, the way and the extent of China’s intervention, and also the challenges faced by the Myanmar government.
Historical background of Myanmar’s ethnic issues: After the Second World War, the interim Myanmar government organized a meeting between the Shan, Kachin and Chin ethnic minority leaders, along with Aung San, to make Myanmar an independent (from Britain) and united (multi-ethnic) country. They eventually reached the Panglong Agreement in 1947, which allowed Frontier Areas to have full internal autonomy..."
Source/publisher:
"Geopolitical Monitor"
Date of publication:
2019-11-18
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-19
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Politics and Government - global and regional - general studies, strategies, theory, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Sub-title:
Blackwater founder Eric Prince’s Frontier Service Group continues to expand in Asia
Description:
"The Frontier Service Group (FSG), founded by former US military contractor Eric Prince, is moving into Myanmar to provide security services for Chinese and other foreign investors, the Myanmar Times reported on March 19.
FSG, a Hong Kong-registered company, has established a joint-venture security company in Myanmar called FSG (Myanmar) Security Services Co Ltd and is advertising for 30 security personnel in Myanmar.
According to the Myanmar Times, the company profile lists Daw Sandar Win (Myanmar), Zhang Huagang (China), Tan Qing (China) and U Si Thu (Myanmar) as directors.
Prince is also the founder of the defunct military contract company Blackwater, which, the Myanmar Times says, “was condemned internationally after its employees allegedly opened fire on a Baghdad street in 2007, killing at least 14 civilians.”
The Myanmar Times quoted Doi Ra, a local Kachin NGO worker, as saying that “we need to know the details of FSG’s operations in Myanmar … the current information is almost non-existent.”
Doi Ra said civil society organizations were concerned that the company would be used to provide security for large-scale infrastructure projects such as the controversial Myitsone hydro-electric dam project in northern Myanmar..."
Source/publisher:
"Asia Times" (Hong Kong)
Date of publication:
2019-03-19
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-19
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Burma/Myanmar's relationship with the Global Economy, Burma's economic relations with ASEAN, Burma's economic relations with China, ASEAN-Burma relations, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Sub-title:
China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), seen most visibly in Myanmar through a proposed “economic corridor” between the two countries, requires government and media scrutiny and regulations to ensure projects are done in a socially and environmentally res
Description:
"Transnational Institute, an Amsterdam-based think-tank focused on building a just, democratic and sustainable planet, released a briefing paper this month on the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) in the Myanmar context.
The paper examines four major infrastructure projects in Myanmar: the interconnection of Myanmar and Chinese electricity grids; a proposed railway from Kunming to Kyaukphyu; a land and waterway passage between the two countries, and industrial hubs.
“These cases highlight a lack of transparency and meaningful consultation, as well as the questionable financial viability and potentially harmful social, economic and environmental impacts of such projects,” the research paper stated.
Stephanie Olinga-Shannon, the paper’s author, said the BRI is a “branding exercise” for activities to address the crisis in Chinese capitalism. In contrast to the pervasive perception of the initiative as a predetermined grand strategy led by Beijing, the scheme in practise consists of a wide range of business- and provincial government-driven projects..."
Source/publisher:
"Myanmar Times" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2019-11-15
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-18
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
“One Belt, One Road” initiative, Burma's economic relations with China, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Sub-title:
New rules threaten to prevent locals from capitalizing on the state’s coming gold rush
Description:
"Aung Gyi is forced to fish covertly under the shroud of night in western Myanmar waters as China bids to transform the strategically key region into a shipping and industrial hub, squeezing out locals who fear being left behind in the gold rush.
Myanmar has declared Rakhine state, associated by many worldwide with the military’s 2017 bloody crackdown on Rohingya Muslims, open for business but locals fear they are being left out of the gold rush as new rules restrict traditional practices.
Paddies and teak forests will be flattened for a colossal Beijing-backed factory zone and deep-sea port, which will serve as its neighboring giant’s gateway to the Indian Ocean. But the state’s promise for development comes with fishing restrictions – the waterways have been freed up for Chinese ships – a situation that has devastated local lives and livelihoods.
“I might be beaten or arrested” if caught fishing illegally, Aung Gyi says as he lays shrimp out to dry by his dilapidated shack in a small fishing hamlet near the town of Kyaukphyu..."
Source/publisher:
"Asia Times" (Hong Kong)
Date of publication:
2019-11-17
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-17
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Other Special Economic Zones, Arakan (Rakhine) State - reports etc. by date (latest first), Burma's economic relations with China, Chinese investment, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Description:
"Tourists visiting Myanmar from China are entering the country more and more in groups set up to keep money in the hands of their Chinese guides and travel agencies, creating a growing problem for locals working in the tourism and hospitality industry, sources say.
Traveling in so-called zero-budget tours, the Chinese visitors to Myanmar lodge and shop only at places already approved, and eat only at restaurants selected by their guides.
These restrictions are now leaving workers in Myanmar’s tourist industry with less and less to do, one worker named Myo Naing told RFA’s Myanmar Service in a recent interview.
“We don’t have jobs now, and we don’t make as much money as we did before,” he said.
“This is because if the tour organizers use us, it will be more expensive for them. They will have to pay us at least fifty dollars. And we won’t let them cheat their tour group or tell them things that aren’t true.”
“Also, because we are citizens of Myanmar and official tourist guides, we won’t let them get away with doing anything untoward,” he said..."
Source/publisher:
"Mizzima" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2019-11-14
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-15
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Tourism - descriptive/analytical, critical - global, Sustainable/ethical tourism (international), China-Burma relations
Language:
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Description:
"Environmental impact assessment (EIA) and social impact assessment (SIA) have started in Kyaukphyu SEZ and Kyaukphyu deep seaport. The project will be implemented after signing agreements including shareholder and other ones, said Deputy Minister Aung Htoo of the Ministry of Commerce.
“Kyaukphyu was already negotiated in the time of the first government. The contract was changed into a ratio of 70-30 from 85-15. Then a framework agreement was signed. Now, the EIA and SIA have already begun. If the shareholder agreement and other ones are signed, the project will start an operation, said Deputy Minister Aung Htoo.
Previously, the agreement showed an 85 % would go to China and a 15 % to Myanmar. In the time of the current government, the project was re-negotiated and was newly signed back. The agreement indicated that a 70% would go to China and 30 % to Myanmar.
“In a ratio of 70: 30, a 70 % goes to China and 30 % to Myanmar. In a 30 % of Myanmar, it will be divided in half, that is, 15 % each to the government and public companies including ethnics, Union Minister Than Myint told the Daily Eleven.
Concerning Kyaukphyu SEZ and Kyaukphyu deep seaport, Myanmar-China bilateral framework agreement was signed by the management committee of Kyaukphy SEZ and CITIC consortium on November 8 in 2018..."
Source/publisher:
"Eleven Media Group" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2019-11-10
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-15
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Other Special Economic Zones, The impact of climate change on the environment of Burma/Myanmar, Burma's economic relations with China, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Description:
"Myanmar and China signed a memorandum of understanding on water resource management in the water resource sectors of both countries, according to the Ministry of Transport and Communications.
At the invitation of Union Minister for Transport and Communications Thant Sin Maung, a 11-member delegation led by Jingping, Minister of Water Resources of the People's Republic of China, called on the former in Nay Pyi Taw on November 5. Both sides signed the MoU on cooperation in water resource sectors.
The agreement signing ceremony was also attended by the Chinese ambassador to Myanmar and officials and Deputy Minister for Transport and Communications Kyaw Myo and departmental officials.
The MoU includes drawing water resource development strategic policy and plans, multi-purpose management cooperation in water resources, management of natural disasters such as flooding and drought, assessment and prediction of water data, water resource management and technological training..."
Source/publisher:
"Eleven Media Group" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2019-11-07
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-15
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
more
Description:
"Dozens of newly built villas line a street as concrete skeletons of what may become hotels or casinos stand half-finished nearby. A new paved roadway allows access to more than a dozen boxy two-story buildings still under construction opposite plots of cleared land streaked with muddy tire tracks.
Farther along the road, about 30 warehouse-type buildings with blue roofs stand at attention beside a river, while in the distance villagers’ small homes dot lush green fields.
The Chinese-backed U.S. $15 billion real estate mega-project along the Thaungyin River in southeastern Myanmar’s Kayin state has been dubbed Shwe Kokko “Chinatown” by locals. It sits about 12 miles away from the state capital Myawaddy, and a 10-minute drive to the Thai town of Mae Sot.
Shwe Kokko is the latest manifestation of China’s growing presence in the Southeast Asian country through its Belt and Road Initiative to connect the country with the rest of the region and beyond. And it's moving ahead at full throttle despite heavy criticism from ethnic Karen locals who object to what they see as Chinese encroachment upon their land, livelihoods, and culture..."
Source/publisher:
"Radio Free Asia (RFA)" (USA)
Date of publication:
2019-11-13
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-14
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
“One Belt, One Road” initiative, Burma's economic relations with China, Chinese investment, Economy of Karen (Kayin) State, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Topic:
Oil, Gas, Special Economic Zone, Belt and Road Initiative, Kyaukphyu, Rakhine state, Rohingya, Myanmar, China
Topic:
Oil, Gas, Special Economic Zone, Belt and Road Initiative, Kyaukphyu, Rakhine state, Rohingya, Myanmar, China
Description:
"Aung Gyi is forced to fish covertly under the shroud of night in western Myanmar waters as China bids to transform the strategically key region into a shipping and industrial hub, squeezing out locals who fear being left behind in the gold rush.
Myanmar has declared Rakhine state, associated by many worldwide with the military’s 2017 bloody crackdown on Rohingya Muslims, open for business – but locals fear they are being left out of the gold rush as new rules restrict traditional practises.
Paddies and teak forests will be flattened for a colossal Beijing-backed factory zone and deep-sea port, which will serve as its neighbouring giant’s gateway to the Indian Ocean.
But the state’s promise for development comes with fishing restrictions – the waterways have been freed up for Chinese ships – a situation that has devastated local lives and livelihoods.
“I might be beaten or arrested” if caught fishing illegally, Aung Gyi says as he lays shrimp out to dry by his dilapidated shack in a small fishing hamlet near the town of Kyaukphyu.
“But I have no choice. Otherwise, my family would starve, the 28-year-old adds..."
Source/publisher:
"The ASEAN Post" (Malaysia)
Date of publication:
2019-11-14
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-14
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
“One Belt, One Road” initiative, Other Special Economic Zones, Burma's economic relations with China, China-Burma relations, Arakan (Rakhine) State - reports etc. by date (latest first)
Language:
more
Description:
"The family of a 17-year-old Myanmar woman trafficked to China more than a year and a half ago said Wednesday that relatives recently had contact with her but they fear that her Chinese abductor might sell her again, amid efforts by NGOs and anti-human trafficking authorities to locate and rescue her.
In April 2018, a local couple from the teenager’s neighborhood in Taungoo township in southern central Myanmar’s Bago region told her they could arrange for her to get a job in China, where salaries for blue-collar work are higher than they are in Myanmar, the young woman’s mother said.
Unbeknownst to the young woman, Thuzar Aye, the couple were brokers for human traffickers, and once she was in their hands, the person for whom they worked sold her to a Chinese man in the border town of Ruili across the river from Muse in Myanmar’s northern Shan state, her mother said.
Thuzar Aye was forced to have the man’s baby later that year, she said.
Now that Thuzar Aye’s family recently had contact with the teenager, her relatives are worried that she might be sold again to someone else..."
Source/publisher:
"Radio Free Asia (RFA)" (USA)
Date of publication:
2019-11-13
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-14
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Trafficking: global, regional and national reports, Trafficking: Burma-specific material, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Description:
"Trade volume from Myanmar-China border camp reached more than US$ 503 million within one month from October 1 to November 1 in 2019-2020 fiscal years, up US$ 160 million compared with the same period of last year, according to the official statistics of the Ministry of Commerce.
Exports from Muse border camp were valued at US$ 266.946 million and imports at US$ 154.289 million. Therefore, exports and imports were valued at US$ 421.235 million.
Exports from Lwejel border camp were valued at US$ 2.655 million and imports at US$ 1.623 million. Therefore, exports and imports were valued at US$ 4.278 million.
Exports from Chinshwehaw border camp were valued at US$ 50.809 million and imports at US$ 6.507 million. Therefore, exports and imports were valued at US$ 57.316 million.
Exports from Kanpikete border camp were valued at US$ 18.450 million and imports at US$ 1.904 million. Therefore, exports and imports were valued at US$ 20.354 million..."
Source/publisher:
"Eleven Media Group" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2019-11-14
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-14
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
more
Description:
"Crabs imported from Myanmar are served at a restaurant in Mangshi City, Dehong Dai and Jingpo Autonomous Prefecture, southwest China's Yunnan Province, Nov. 5, 2019. Wanding seafood market in Ruili of Dehong imports over 40 tonnes of crabs everyday from Myanmar and sells them across the country....A customer eats crabs imported from Myanmar at a restaurant in Mangshi City, Dehong Dai and Jingpo Autonomous Prefecture, southwest China's Yunnan Province, Nov. 5, 2019. Wanding seafood market in Ruili of Dehong imports over 40 tonnes of crabs everyday from Myanmar and sells them across the country.....A cook serves crabs imported from Myanmar at a restaurant in Mangshi City, Dehong Dai and Jingpo Autonomous Prefecture, southwest China's Yunnan Province, Nov. 5, 2019. Wanding seafood market in Ruili of Dehong imports over 40 tonnes of crabs everyday from Myanmar and sells them across the country......Workers sort out crabs imported from Myanmar at Wanding seafood market in Ruili City, Dehong Dai and Jingpo Autonomous Prefecture, southwest China's Yunnan Province, Nov. 5, 2019. Wanding seafood market in Ruili of Dehong imports over 40 tonnes of crabs everyday from Myanmar and sells them across the country.....Workers sort out crabs imported from Myanmar at Wanding seafood market in Ruili City, Dehong Dai and Jingpo Autonomous Prefecture, southwest China's Yunnan Province, Nov. 5, 2019. Wanding seafood market in Ruili of Dehong imports over 40 tonnes of crabs everyday from Myanmar and sells them across the country....."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2019-11-06
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-13
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
more
Sub-title:
The Ministry of Electricity and Energy (MOEE) has signed an agreement to purchase electricity generated by the 135 MW gas-fired Kyaukphyu Power Plant that will be built by independent power producer Kyauk Phyu Electric Power Co.
Description:
"According to a statement from the MOEE, the power purchase agreement (PPA) was signed last Tuesday.
Kyauk Phyu Electric Power Co is a joint venture between Myanmar’s Supreme Group and Chinese state-owned firm Power China.
The gas-fired power plant in Kyaukphyu, Rakhine State, is one of four projects expected to generate a total of 3111MW approved by the government last January.
The PPA is expected to help address Myanmar’s growing need for electricity, which is rising by about 1000MW a year, said the MOEE.
The power plantwill be located on the grounds of the 230 KV Main Power Sub-Station in Kyaukphyu Township in Rakhine State and will be built by under the build-operate-transfer (BOT) system.
Once completed the power plant will have an installed capacity of 146MW, although it will operate at 135MW.
The plant is being counted on to supply 1.05 billion units of electricity a year that is greatly needed in Rakhine and the rest of the country.
As the Kyaukphyu power plant project will take at least three years to come online, seven other PPAs expected to provide 1166MW of electricity have been approved as a short-term measure to meet power demand for next year, said Minister of Electricity and Energy U Win Khaing..."
Source/publisher:
"Myanmar Times" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2019-11-12
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-13
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Arakan (Rakhine) State - reports etc. by date (latest first), Renewable energy Myanmar, Burma's economic relations with China, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Description:
"CHINA recently contributed US$1 million (RM4.1 million) to fund the Myanmar government-led peace process with armed rebel groups in the country.
The fund was presented by China's Special Envoy for Asian Affairs, Sun Guoxiang, in his visit to the country, The Irrawaddy reported.
Of the total, US$400,000 is for the National Reconciliation and Peace Centre (NRPC); while US$300,000 will go to the Peace Commission and the Joint Ceasefire Monitoring Committee (JMC) each.
Union minister with the State Counsellor’s Office and vice chairman of the NRPC, U Kyaw Tint Swe, received the sum from Sun, according to a statement from the Information Ministry.
China's Xinhua News reported that the Chinese government will continue supporting the peace process in Myanmar.
Sun was quoted as saying that the friendship between the two countries remains cordial and that the contribution was the fourth made by China.
He said China is hopeful that peace can be hastened in the country, and assured that it will always support Myanmar in its continuous effort to achieve a resolution.
During his visit to Myanmar, the special envoy met with State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and military chief Senior General Min Aung Hlaing.
In Jan 2017, China contributed US$1 million to Myanmar’s peace process through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and pledged US$3 million until 2020. In Dec 2017, US$500,000 was donated to the JMC and 10 vehicles in June 2018 by the then-Chinese Ambassador, Hong Liang..."
Source/publisher:
"New Straits Times" (Malaysia)
Date of publication:
2019-11-09
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-11
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Peace processes, ceasefires and ceasefire talks (websites, documents, reports and studies), Armed conflict and peace-building in Burma - theoretical, strategic and general, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Description:
"Fearful for their safety, many of the 241,000 people forced from their homes by conflict in Myanmar are reluctant to go back. Now campaigners are mobilising to resist organised returns Bawk Nu Awng hasn’t been home since 2011. All three of the villages where she spent her childhood have been destroyed. “War hit wherever my family lived,” she said. “I feel like it is my responsibility to engage in all matters related to peace.”
Now aged 21, Bawk Nu Awng, from Kachin in Myanmar, has emerged as a spokesperson among youth displaced by conflict. When Aung San Suu Kyi took power in 2016, her party, the National League for Democracy, pledged to prioritise ending conflict in Myanmar. Yet the country’s various ethnic groups continue to fight for increased federal autonomy.
In Rakhine state, conflict is escalating between Myanmar’s military, known as the Tatmadaw, and the rebel Arakan Army. Nationwide, an estimated 241,000 people like Bawk Nu Awng remain in camps, including more than 97,000 in Kachin state.
Camps for internally displaced people are the most visible evidence of Myanmar’s ongoing strife. With elections coming up next year, political momentum to send displaced people home has accelerated.
Kachin, which shares a border with China’s Yunnan province, is a strategic area for China’s belt and road initiative, a global development strategy that includes a multi-billion pound China-Myanmar economic corridor. In March, Yunnan officials met with the influential Kachin Baptist Convention; support for returns and a peace agreement was encouraged, with the Chinese contingent suggesting stability could bring investment and development..."
Source/publisher:
"The Guardian" (UK)
Date of publication:
2019-08-01
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-10
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Burma: Internal displacement/forced migration of several ethnic groups., Internal displacement/forced migration of Kachin, Armed conflict in Kachin State - general articles, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Description:
"China is rebranding and repackaging dormant or delayed projects in Myanmar under the banner of its Belt and Road Initiative, many of whose projects lack transparency and consultation with affected communities, according to the latest policy brief by a Netherlands-based research and advocacy institute.
Stephanie Olinga-Shannon, a planning and evaluation coordinator for the Transitional Institute (TNI) who also researches Chinese foreign policy for the organization, said, “Rather than a ‘grand strategy’, the BRI is a broad and loosely governed framework of activities seeking to address a crisis in Chinese capitalism.”
“Almost any activities, implemented by any actor in any place can be included under the BRI framework and branded as a BRI project in Myanmar,” Olinga-Shannon said.
The BRI allows Chinese state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and provincial governments to promote their own projects to pursue profit and economic growth, she added..."
Source/publisher:
"The Irrawaddy" (Thailand)
Date of publication:
2019-11-08
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-09
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
“One Belt, One Road” initiative, Other Special Economic Zones, Burma's economic relations with China, Chinese investment, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Description:
"A consortium led by a Chinese company has donated thousands of school bags and T-shirts to students in Myanmar's Rakhine state as of Friday.
Since Monday, the China International Trust and Investment Corporation (CITIC) Consortium donated 4,000 schoolbags which include stationeries and 5,000 T-shirts to 32 schools in Kyaukphyu township.
"We hope that the donation will create better learning conditions for local students and will contribute to development of basic education in Kyauk Phyu." Ma Chuanfu, deputy managing director of CITIC Myanmar, told the donation ceremony.
It was the second batch of such donation done by the CITIC consortium and so far, 7,000 schoolbags and 8,000 T-shirts have been distributed to Myanmar students from 63 schools in Kyaukphyu township, in collaboration with China Foundation for Poverty Alleviation (CFPA) Myanmar Office since 2018.
It was learnt that the third batch of donation which includes 2,000 schoolbags and T-shirts is set to be done by the consortium before the end of 2019..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2019-11-08
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-08
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
China-Burma relations, Arakan (Rakhine) State - reports etc. by date (latest first), Children
Language:
more
Description:
"China donated cash assistance of 400,000 U.S. dollars to be used in Myanmar government's peace process on Wednesday morning in Nay Pyi Taw.
Special Envoy for Asian Affairs of the Chinese Foreign Ministry Sun Guoxiang presented the cash donation to U Kyaw Tint Swe, vice-chairman of Myanmar's National Reconciliation and Peace Center (NRPC) and union minister of the State Counselor's Office.
Speaking at the donation ceremony, U Kyaw Tint Swe thanked China, saying that China's perpetual assistance to Myanmar helps maintain the long-held paukphaw (fraternal) friendship between the two countries.
U Kyaw Tint Swe also expressed his belief that China would continue to extend its assistance to Myanmar for mutual benefits for the two countries.
"It was the fourth time that the Chinese government donates cash assistance to Myanmar's NRPC with the aim to support Myanmar's peace process," said the Chinese special envoy, pledging for the continued assistance to Myanmar..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2019-11-06
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-07
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
China-Burma relations, Peace processes, ceasefires and ceasefire talks (websites, documents, reports and studies), Armed conflict and peace-building in Burma - theoretical, strategic and general
Language:
more
Description:
"Myanmar and North Korea were long known as Asia’s ‘pariah states’ — internationally sanctioned and ostracised for human rights violations, authoritarian repression and, in North Korea’s case, persistent efforts to develop nuclear weapons. But in 2011, Myanmar’s ruling junta surprised observers by making a strategic decision to reform and open, ushering in a quasi-civilian government. Meanwhile, North Korea pressed ahead with its nuclear and missile programs, hardening its pariah status. Myanmar and North Korea rely heavily on China for trade, investment, diplomatic support and military assistance. But citizens in both countries express resentment about China’s growing economic and political influence. In Myanmar, concerns centre on China’s ties to ethnic armed groups fighting against the central government, and the environmental and social effects of Chinese-led infrastructure projects like the Myitsone Dam. Consequently, Myanmar used liberalising reforms to signal its desire to adhere to international norms and attract new diplomatic partners.
North Korea relies even more heavily on China and resents Beijing’s endorsement of UN sanctions against its nuclear weapons and missile programs. Yet North Korea eschewed reform and opening, instead doubling down on its pariah status by racing to advance its nuclear and missile programs. There are three factors behind Myanmar and North Korea’s different approaches to mitigating reliance on China..."
Source/publisher:
"East Asia Forum" (Australia)
Date of publication:
2019-11-07
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-07
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
Format :
pdf
Size:
36.71 KB (4 pages)
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Description:
" A cultural exchange program of Chinese ethnic groups was inaugurated at China Cultural Center in Myanmar's Yangon Tuesday morning.
Set to last till Nov. 15, the program "Colorful Chinese Nation-Walking into the Mekong River (Myanmar)" is organized by the China Ethnic Museum or the Chinese Ethnic Culture Park and sponsored by the China Cultural Center in Myanmar's Yangon and Beijing National Cultural Heritage Protection Foundation.
Li Xiaoyan, counselor of Chinese Embassy in Myanmar, said that the cultural program aims to deepen the bilateral cultural exchange and cooperation between Myanmar and China as well as friendship between the two people.
The 11-day cultural program features exhibition displaying intangible cultural heritage crafts by different ethnic groups in China.
The program also includes a photo exhibition displaying dozens of photos and a workshop where the observers can study the tie-dyeing technique of the Bai ethnic group..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2019-11-05
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-06
Grouping:
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"A Myanmar woman trafficked to China seven years ago and who bore four children while in captivity has been returned to her family, an NGO worker and the woman’s sister told RFA Monday.
The 47-year-old woman, whose leg had been broken by her captors, was found by Chinese police and transferred to Myanmar authorities in the border town of Muse in Myanmar’s northern Shan state on Nov. 1, they said. She was then sent back to her home in Bago city in central Myanmar’s Bago region on Sunday.
Her relatives requested that RFA’s Myanmar Service not publish the name of the woman.
“She has a broken leg and is mentally disabled,” said Thaung Htun from the Muse Humanitarian Organization which helped the woman return home.
“She was trafficked, forced to get pregnant, and has had four babies,” he said. “She is now 47 years old. They must have thrown her out as she is getting old.”
Thaung Htun said Chinese authorities found the woman throwing away Chinese currency notes along a road, Thaung Htun said..."
Source/publisher:
"Radio Free Asia (RFA)" (USA)
Date of publication:
2019-11-04
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-05
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Trafficking: global, regional and national reports, Trafficking: Burma-specific material, Women's rights, Sex work, China-Burma relations
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" Photo: Oliver SlowThe site of the Myitsone dam project in Myanmar’s Kachin State. Photo: Oliver Slow
The site of the Myitsone dam project in Myanmar’s Kachin State. Photo: Oliver Slow
Myanmar’s decision-makers have interacted with Chinese partners on infrastructure and investment projects in a seemingly dichotomous manner in recent years. But in a sense, their decisions reflect a practical logic that takes into account the concerns of both the communities affected and the population at large. The abrupt suspension in 2011 of a billion-dollar hydropower dam project at Myitsone in Kachin State, and more recent agreements entered into by the current government to bring Myanmar closer into the orbit of China’s Belt and Road Initiative, present contrasting examples of Myanmar’s approach to Chinese projects. They also illustrate the practical logic that characterises that approach.
Myanmar hit the pause button in its infrastructure deals with China in September 2011, when the Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) government led by former president Thein Sein suspended the Myitsone dam project for the duration of his administration. That administration ended in March 2016, and the question of whether construction should be resumed, and of whether something else could be done with the project, has become a heated and emotional issue..."
Source/publisher:
"South China Morning Post" (Hong Kong)
Date of publication:
2019-10-31
Date of entry/update:
2019-10-31
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"MYANMAR would need to take a strong governmental role is to accelerate the China-Myanmar Economic Corridor (CMEC) as it becomes an active part of China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), following the suspension of a controversial hydropower dam venture in 2011, an senior Burmese economist has suggested.
Dr U Myint, formerly chief economic adviser to former Burmese leader Thein Sein, said the previous and present Myanmar governments have taken different approaches to engaging China over large-scale infrastructure projects.
"This apparently inconsistent policy has the potential to cause confusion and anxiety among the Myanmar public and implementing officials, who are usually not included in or consulted on decisions related to investment or infrastructure projects. Past experiences in dealing with China may also cause skepticism on the part of both the public and bureaucrats," Dr U Myint wrote in a guest publication for Singapore's ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute published Tuesday..."
Source/publisher:
"The Business Times" (Singapore)
Date of publication:
2019-10-29
Date of entry/update:
2019-10-30
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
“One Belt, One Road” initiative, Burma's economic relations with China, Other Special Economic Zones, China-Burma relations
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"Foreign investments of US$362.28 million flowed into the Special Economic Zones (SEZs), under the Special Economic Zone Law, in the 2018-2019 fiscal year, according to figures released by the Directorate of Investment and Company Administration, Myanmar state media reported.
A total of 106 enterprises from 18 countries and four local businesses have ploughed in $1.84 billion so far in the zones, data on FDI of existing enterprises shows, according to Mizzima. Japan topped the list of foreign investors in the previous fiscal, accounting for more than 36% of the overall investment, followed by Singapore and Thailand.
FDI also flowed into the SEZs from South Korea, Hong Kong, the United Kingdom, Australia, the United Arab Emirates, Malaysia, Austria, Taiwan, Panama, China, Brunei, Vietnam, France, Switzerland, and the Netherlands..."
Source/publisher:
"Bangkok Post" (Thailand)
Date of publication:
2019-10-10
Date of entry/update:
2019-10-29
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Other Special Economic Zones, Burma's economic relations with Japan, China-Burma relations
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"Myanmar’s State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi returned this week from a visit to China with a grant of 1 billion yuan (U.S. $148 million) for development projects, while her spokesman said a controversial Chinese dam project on the Irrawaddy River was not on the agenda.
The grant, which was agreed when she attended the Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation last week in Beijing, would be used for projects to improve people’s livelihoods, studies for major projects and humanitarian assistance for people displaced by civil war in northern Myanmar, Myanmar's Foreign Ministry said.
The two countries signed Agreement on Economic and Technical Cooperation; a Memorandum of Understanding on the China-Myanmar Economic Corridor (CMEC) Cooperation Plan; and a MoU on a Five-year Development Program for Economic and Trade Cooperation, the ministry said..."
Source/publisher:
"Radio Free Asia (RFA)" (USA)
Date of entry/update:
2019-10-28
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
“One Belt, One Road” initiative, China-Burma relations, Burma's economic relations with China
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"Upper House MP J Yaw Wu from the National Unity Party representing Kachin State Consitiuency-1revealed he refused to accept the bribe from the Chinese Power Investment (CPI) Compnay in order to keep silent about the Myitsone Dam Project, at a press conference at Real Link Hotel in Yankin Township in Yangon on January 26.
On September 23, 2011, MP J Yaw Wu remonstrated against the Myitsone Dam project as a MP from the constituency-12 in Kachin State in the time of the Thein Sein Administration.
He sent the remonstration letter to former President Thein Sein via Upper House Speaker Khin Aung Myint.
He was re-elected Upper House MP of the Kachin State Constituency-1 in the 2015 General Election.
“I don’t remember the date. In around December 2011, they (CPI) met with me. The delegation included the GM and the female secretary. The GM is a female. The GM herself can speak Myanmar language. The GM said the company paid too much money to the heads of the State. But she did not talk to me like so. First she asked my bank accounts. But I have no bank account. They said they want to put money into the bank account. They asked me to extend a helping hand. They said they would start lobbying to resume the Myitsone dam project. They urged me to keep silent about the Myitsone Dam project..."
Source/publisher:
"Eleven Media Group" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2019-01-27
Date of entry/update:
2019-10-28
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Assessment of hydropower projects in Burma/Myanmar, Dams and other hydropower projects (global, regional), Dams and other projects on the Irrawaddy and its tributories, Burma's economic relations with China, China-Burma relations
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Sub-title:
Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, in Beijing this week for the Belt and Road Forum, finds herself in a much weaker negotiating position than on her last visit to China in 2017.
Description:
"With Myanmar’s diplomatic isolation, stalled peace process and lacklustre economy, Daw Suu has far fewer cards in her hands. Beijing is Myanmar’s key “defender” in the United Nations at a time when the government’s handling of the Rakhine crisis and the recent jailing of two Reuters journalists have eroded its standing in the international community. China currently also accounts for a quarter of all approved foreign investments in the country.
In Beijing, the State Counsellor is expected to discuss the highly controversial Myitsone dam project with her Chinese counterparts. The US$3.6 billion, 6000MW dam, backed by China’s State Power Investment Corporation (SPIC), was suspended by then-President U Thein Sein in 2011, owing to widespread domestic opposition. Recent developments suggest Daw Suu is under pressure from the Chinese to resuscitate the dam. As I’ve argued, resumption would place her National League for Democracy party at risk in next year’s General Election. Just this week, thousands of people in Kachin’s Waingmaw township protested against Myitsone.
In Bago Region recently, Daw Suu told local residents to think about the project from “a wider perspective.” She should explain what she meant by that, and say what other factors are taken into account.
For starters, transparency is essential. For example, officials of SPIC have been urging the Myanmar government to publicly disclose details of the Myitsone contract since June 2016. And this is not the only enterprise which needs to come clean..."
Source/publisher:
"Myanmar Times" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2019-04-26
Date of entry/update:
2019-10-28
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Assessment of hydropower projects in Burma/Myanmar, Dams and other hydropower projects (global, regional), Dams and other projects on the Irrawaddy and its tributories, “One Belt, One Road” initiative, Burma's economic relations with China, China-Burma relations
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"Amid growing public concern about Chinese-backed development projects in Myanmar, State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi will leave for Beijing late this month to attend the second Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) summit. During her meeting with the Chinese President Xi Jinping there, she is quite likely to discuss the Myitsone Dam, the most controversial Chinese project in the country so far. As well the Myitsone dam, another important China-backed development project is now underway on the shore of Bay of Bengal in Myanmar’s western state of Rakhine. Prior to Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s visit to China, The Irrawaddy talks to Bertil Linter, a Swedish journalist and author who has been covering Myanmar and Southeast Asia for nearly four decades, on China’s major involvement—from development projects to the peace process—in the country.
The momentum to cancel the Myitsone dam is building in Myanmar. This coincides with State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s upcoming visit to China where she will attend the second BRI summit. She has been very vague about her stance on the dam and some articles written by the NLD (National League for Democracy) party members have been indicating that the dam should get the go-ahead. Government leaders are suggesting the dam is downsized or relocated. Moreover, several projects which the current government has agreed to implement with China have not been disclosed to the public. What is your opinion on this?
I believe Daw Aung San Suu Kyi must be aware of the fact that it would be political suicide to agree on a resumption of the Myitsone project. With elections coming up next year, any Myanmar politician would have to think carefully before agreeing to such a controversial, and hugely unpopular, project like this one. We all remember how much she was against it when she was in opposition. Why does she appear to have softened her stance on the matter? That’s a question that should be posed to her..."
Source/publisher:
"The Irrawaddy" (Thailand)
Date of publication:
2019-04-08
Date of entry/update:
2019-10-28
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Assessment of hydropower projects in Burma/Myanmar, Dams and other projects on the Irrawaddy and its tributories, Dams and other hydropower projects (global, regional), “One Belt, One Road” initiative, Burma's economic relations with China, China-Burma relations
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"If Myitsone issue fails to be resolved after a long delay, it will seriously hurt the confidence of Chinese entrepreneurs in investing in Myanmar. Therefore, China and Myanmar are in close consultation on the issue of Myitsone hydropower project to find out a proper solution acceptable to both sides as soon as possible, said Mr. Hong Liang, Chinese Ambassador to Myanmar.
Mr. Hong Liang, Chinese Ambassador to Myanmar, visited Myitkyina and met with leaders of political parties and social organizations in Kachin State on 28 and 29 December 2018.
On the economic and trade cooperation between China and Kachin State, Ambassador Hong Liang said that in accordance with the consensus reached by the state leaders of the two countries, China and Myanmar are jointly building the Belt and Road and China-Myanmar Economic Corridor. Kachin State is adjacent to China, acting as an important hub of China-Myanmar Economic Corridor. At present, the two sides are planning to build Houqiao-Kanpitetee China-Myanmar border economic cooperation zone and an industrial park in Myitkyina. China and Myanmar are also actively pushing forward the connectivity of railways, highways and power grids, which will bring enormous opportunities for the economic and social development of Kachin State.
Ambassador Hong Liang said that currently one of the difficulties facing China-Myanmar cooperation is the issue of Myitsone hydropower project, which has been put on hold for seven years. If this issue fails to be resolved after a long delay, it will seriously hurt the confidence of Chinese entrepreneurs in investing in Myanmar. In addition to that, Myanmar’s economic and social development and the building of China-Myanmar Economic Corridor require sufficient electricity supply. To this end, China and Myanmar are in close consultation on the issue of Myitsone hydropower project to find out a proper solution acceptable to both sides as soon as possible. In this connection, support from the people of Kachin State would be highly valued..."
Source/publisher:
"Eleven Media Group" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2019-01-14
Date of entry/update:
2019-10-27
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Assessment of hydropower projects in Burma/Myanmar, Dams and other hydropower projects (global, regional), Dams and other projects on the Irrawaddy and its tributories, Burma's economic relations with China, China-Burma relations
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Description:
"When Min Hlaing Oo first set foot in Hebian village, Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture of Southwest China's Yunnan Province, the thing that impressed him most was its tidiness.
After staying in the village for several days, Oo, who is also a village head in Myanmar, was totally enchanted by the way it was organized. "I wish my village could be the same as this village," he told the Global Times.
Oo is one of the dozens of grass-roots officials from ASEAN countries who visited Hebian village this May to learn about China's experiences in poverty alleviation, as well as share their countries' knowledge in combating poverty at the village level.
"What China has done in its poverty reduction work cannot be completely copied by other ASEAN countries, but it's useful for them as a reference, as most ASEAN countries are still agricultural societies. Besides, China's rapid urbanization and industrialization also serve as a useful lesson for these ASEAN countries," Li Xiaoyun, a professor at the China Agricultural University, told the Global Times.
Since 2012, China has made tremendous achievements in reducing poverty in its rural areas. In the past six years, the country has lifted 82.39 million rural poor out of poverty, with their numbers going from 98.99 million in 2012 down to 16.6 million in 2018, Xinhua reported..."
Source/publisher:
"Global Times" (China)
Date of publication:
2019-05-21
Date of entry/update:
2019-10-27
Grouping:
Individual Documents
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