Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi urged Myanmar’s junta leaders to speak with their opponents amid concerns about escalating violence and the loss of human rights in the Southeast Asian country.
“We encourage all parties in Myanmar to engage in political dialogue within the constitutional and legal framework and restart the process of democratic transformation,” Wang said in comments published by the ministry. He also pledged support and reiterated hopes for Myanmar’s “political and social stability”.
He is in Myanmar for his first visit since the junta toppled the democratically elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in February 2021.
His trip is the most important by a Chinese representative since leader Xi Jinping met junta head Min Aung Hlaing in 2020 to discuss China-backed projects, including a controversial dam and economic corridor.
“China pays close attention to the situation in Myanmar and is ready to continue to play a constructive role in its own way,” he said.
“We will jointly support Myanmar’s efforts to restore its economy, improve people’s lives and guarantee people’s rights and interests at the grassroots level.”
Myanmar’s Foreign Minister Wunna Maung Lwin thanked China for its “selfless assistance to Myanmar’s national development,” according to a statement from the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Wang arrived at Nyaung Oo airport in Bagan city on Sunday and was greeted by senior military leaders and other state officials.
He will lead a Chinese delegation to attend a meeting of top foreign ministers with their counterparts from across the region, including Cambodia, Vietnam, Thailand and Laos, although it remains unclear whether he will meet with Min Aung Hlaing.
China remains one of Myanmar’s few international allies. She refused to condemn the 2021 coup in which the junta toppled Suu Kyi, who is now being held in solitary confinement in prison — raising concerns among global watchdogs and human rights groups.
In early April, Beijing pledged its support to the junta’s leaders, saying their support would remain “no matter how the situation changes”.
China is also one of Myanmar’s biggest trading partners, investing billions of dollars in mining, oil and natural gas developments in the resource-rich country, and along with Moscow, Beijing supplies weapons to the military junta, according to the United Nations. (UN).
Wang’s visit comes as the country plunges into more turmoil. Not only is deposed leader Suu Kyi in prison, but the planned state executions of two men, veteran democracy activist Ko Jimmy and former National Democracy League deputy Phyo Zayar Thaw, sparked UN protests, which they called “ a flagrant violation of the right to life, liberty and security”.
Ian Chong, a professor of political science and an expert on regional security at the National University of Singapore, said it was in Beijing’s interest for Myanmar to be politically stable.
“It seems to me that Beijing is trying to broker some sort of deal in Myanmar, or at least it appears to be doing so, and its approach seems to provide the junta with some of the legitimacy it craves,” Chong said.
“Whether this will change the junta’s behavior towards the civil war its coup started is doubtful, but it could give Beijing more leverage over the military.”
Source: CNN Brasil
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