Beijing, Nov 7 (EFE).- Chinese Premier Li Qiang expressed Beijing’s support for “political reconciliation and transformation” in Myanmar during a meeting with junta leader Min Aung Hlaing, according to state media.
A handout photo made available by the Myanmar military information team shows Myanmar’s military chief Senior General Min Aung Hlaing (C) arriving at the venue of the 8th Greater Mekong Subregion Summit in Kunming, China, 07 November 2024. EFE/EPA/MYANMAR MILITARY INFORMATION TEAM HANDOUT EDITORIAL USE ONLY/NO SALES
“China supports Myanmar in advancing the political reconciliation and transformation,” Li said at the meeting, according to Xinhua late Wednesday night.
The pair met on the sidelines of a summit for economic cooperation between the Mekong countries (China, Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam) in the city of Kunming, in the southwestern region of Yunnan.
This is the first trip to China and one of the few trips abroad by Min Aung Hlaing, who has also been to Russia and Indonesia since the coup on Feb. 1, 2021.
Beijing did not condemn the military coup, but appears to be trying to ensure the stability of a country with which it shares more than 2,100 kilometers of border and where it has numerous projects.
Li “expressed the hope that Myanmar will ensure the safety of Chinese personnel, institutions and projects there.”
“China has always placed its relations with Myanmar at an important position in China’s neighborhood diplomacy, and will always support Myanmar in choosing a development path suited to its national conditions,” Li said.
He also expressed China’s willingness to work with Myanmar to “steadily advance the construction of the China-Myanmar Economic Corridor under the framework of high-quality Belt and Road cooperation.”
The premier called on both sides to “strengthen cooperation in education, culture and tourism, enhance local exchanges, and jointly crack down on cross-border crimes such as online gambling and telecom fraud.”
In turn, Xinhua reported that Min Aung Hlaing thanked China for its “valuable assistance to Myanmar’s economic and social development.”
He added that he “appreciates China’s positive role in promoting peace and reconciliation in Myanmar” and that his country “will make every effort to ensure the safety of Chinese personnel, institutions and projects.”
“Myanmar hopes to take the opportunity of the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties next year to consolidate bilateral friendship and deepen cooperation in such fields as economy, trade, investment, agriculture, poverty reduction and people’s livelihoods,” Min Aung Hlaing said.
The junta chief’s visit takes place under special circumstances. In August, China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with the coup leader in Myanmar and urged him to hold an “all-inclusive election” amid the army’s battlefield defeats.
Barely a month later, the junta appealed to the ethnic minority guerrillas and pro-democracy forces it’s fighting to negotiate a political solution and participation in an election, an offer that was rejected.
Although diplomatic exchanges between the military junta and China have continued since the coup, they have become more public over the years, as has Beijing’s mediation in the conflict.
China generally takes a pragmatic approach to the volatile country, maintaining ties with both the generals and rebel groups and the pro-democracy opposition to secure its numerous economic projects there.
The military justified its coup alleging fraud during the November 2020 election, which was won with the endorsement of international observers by the National League for Democracy of Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi, detained since the uprising.
The coup exacerbated decades of guerrilla warfare and created social and economic crises. EFE
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