Updated
Updated · South China Morning Post · Jun 16
Xi Backs Myanmar's Min Aung Hlaing, Signs 18 Cooperation Deals
Updated
Updated · South China Morning Post · Jun 16

Xi Backs Myanmar's Min Aung Hlaing, Signs 18 Cooperation Deals

3 articles · Updated · South China Morning Post · Jun 16

Summary

  • Xi told Myanmar's Min Aung Hlaing he would deepen strategic cooperation and support the junta leader during talks in Beijing.
  • Eighteen memorandums of understanding were signed after the closed-door meeting, covering cross-border transport, free trade, disaster relief, health and media.
  • Min Aung Hlaing is seeking to ease Myanmar's international isolation and press for China trade routes to reopen after restrictions tied to fears of border conflict spillover.
  • China, Myanmar's longest-border neighbor, cast itself as a trusted friend and steadfast partner as regional turbulence and instability shape both countries' calculations.

Insights

China's new deals promise stability, but will they secure its investments or fuel a deadlier conflict on its border?
With Beijing's backing, can Myanmar's junta win a civil war when it controls less than half the country?