"China's president Xi Jingping will today kick off a two-day state visit to Myanmar which is likely to set the course of their future bilateral relations. While the visit is highly significant for Beijing, Myanmar is more hesitant, fearing it is becoming over-dependent on its northern neighbour, according to analysts and diplomats. But the visit certainly is a public endorsement of the special relationship that has formed between the two countries, and may herald a new era of strengthened relationship. "[This visit] is extremely important, as it is likely to go a long way in defining the course of Myanmar-China bilateral relations into the future, especially under the watch of the NLD [National League for Democracy] administration led by Aung San Suu Kyi," according to Moe Thuzar -- a regional specialist and Myanmar programme coordinator at the Singapore-based think-tank, the ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute. Nevertheless it is much more than a symbolic occasion, according to most analysts, and a plethora of bilateral agreements on investment and trade are in the pipeline. These are the concrete dividends of such high-level visits -- often the result of months if not years of prior bilateral negotiations. "These deals, apart from the symbolic setting of signatures by the principal players, will also define Myanmar's geo-economic future," Ms Thuzar added..."