"While the West would like Myanmar?s November elections to lead toward democracy, China is seeking something far more straightforward: stability. When the leader of Myanmar?s military government, Than Shwe, visited Beijing earlier this month, he sought to reassure Chinese leaders that elections would not produce any negative fallout along their 2,192-kilometer shared border. Conflict along the border has been an enduring characteristic of post-independence Myanmar, where a handful of ethnic groups maintain their own territory, militias and political representation. But Beijing has just cause for concern after the Myanmar military?s August 2009 offensive into the Kokang region shattered a 20-year cease-fire and sent more than 30,000 refugees into China?s Yunnan province..."