China blocks all goods entering Myanmar through Muse and Mongla gates

China’s government has halted the flow of goods into Myanmar through the Muse and Mongla border gates in northern and eastern Shan State since Tuesday, according to border traders. The move—part of China’s effort to pressure ethnic armed groups based along the border to end their offensive against Myanmar’s military junta—has effectively brought all trade along the 1,300-mile border to a standstill. While Muse is still under the control of the regime, Mongla is controlled by the National Democratic Alliance Army, a group allied to members of the Brotherhood Alliance but not taking part in its Operation 1027 offensive, launched in October of last year. Traders in Muse say they were notified of the decision to close the town’s three border gates by the Pauk Kwan company, which handles tax clearance for Chinese imports. The closure affects a wide range of goods routinely imported from China, including food products, household items, cement, and batteries and solar panels, according to the notice. “The Muse area relies heavily on imported Chinese goods. This will create significant difficulties and cause shortages and higher prices,” said a resident of Muse. Another resident of the town criticised the Chinese government, saying that it bore some responsibility for Myanmar’s political woes. “They sell aircraft and weapons to the junta and take goods from the ethnic armed groups and sell weapons to them as well. China has become quite a problem for us,” he said. China has already blocked trade through other northern Shan State border gates controlled by the Ta’ang National Liberation Army and the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army, both members of the Brotherhood Alliance. On Saturday, all border crossings linked to territories controlled by the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) were also closed, as the group continues to seize territory in Kachin State bordering China. Last week, Chinese officials met with senior leaders of the KIA’s political wing in Yingjiang, a town in China’s Yunnan Province located near the KIA’s Laiza headquarters, but failed to persuade them to end their offensive. Myanmar has a total of 17 border trade posts with its neighbours China, India, Thailand, and Bangladesh, accounting for more than 25 percent of the country’s total trade. Over the past year, the regime has lost control over much of this trade. In response, it has cracked down on most goods entering the country through territory controlled by anti-junta forces. Vice-Senior General Soe Win, the regime’s second in command, recently called for effective measures to eliminate these “illegal imports,” saying they significantly affect the junta’s tax revenue and support armed groups rebelling against them.

China blocks all goods entering Myanmar through Muse and Mongla gates

The move, effectively ending all remaining border trade between the two countries, is aimed at pressuring groups opposed Myanmar’s junta

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