China to give Myanmar junta 1 billion yuan in aid for election, other projects

China is preparing to provide significant financial and technical assistance to Myanmar’s military junta for a total of 20 projects, according to leaked documents obtained by Myanmar Now. The internal documents, from the regime’s Foreign Economic Relations Department, indicate that the support, totalling 1 billion yuan (approximately US$138 million), includes funding for a national census, infrastructure projects, and surveillance systems. This assistance comes as China continues to strengthen its ties with the junta that seized power in February 2021. The package was reportedly finalised during a recent visit to China by Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, the leader of the coup regime. About 15 percent of the 1 billion yuan will fund the junta’s national census. Originally scheduled for completion in October, the census deadline has now been extended to the end of the year, following Chinese involvement. The junta’s immigration minister has been in China since mid-October, meeting with authorities in Shanghai and Guangzhou. The regime has said that data from the census will be used for elections it plans to hold next year. In addition to the census, China is funding key infrastructure projects. These include repairs to the Yeywa Hydropower Station in Mandalay Region and the Thanlyin bridge and Aung Zeya cable bridge in Yangon. In January 2020, Chinese President Xi Jinpeng met with Aung San Suu Kyi and other leaders of her National League for Democracy (NLD) government and pledged to provide 4 billion yuan ($550 million) in aid over the next three years. It was unclear if the current package—which includes an additional 77 project proposals that would bring the total amount requested by the regime to 4 billion yuan—is part of that promised funding. While most international donors have suspended aid to Myanmar since the coup, China has continued to provide support. Political analysts suggest that China’s involvement is driven by its desire to maintain stability in Myanmar under military rule. A political observer in Singapore noted that China views continued military control as a way to safeguard its strategic interests in the region. “When any country, not just China, gives loans to another country, it is clearly based on their economic and strategic interests,” he said. China has also been involved in efforts to mediate conflicts within Myanmar. Reports indicate that Beijing has pressured ethnic armed groups to halt their offensive against the junta, which has inflicted heavy losses on the military over the past year. As part of its effort to rein in the regime’s opponents, China has also detained Peng Daxun, commander of the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army, the ethnic Kokang armed group that captured Lashio, northern Shan State’s largest city, in August. While China has expressed support for the regime’s planned elections, most other countries have been more critical, saying that they will lack legitimacy. Bo Bo Oo, a former NLD MP, criticised China’s stance on the elections, saying that financially backing them allows the military leadership to “pretend to have international support.”

China to give Myanmar junta 1 billion yuan in aid for election, other projects

Leaked documents obtained by Myanmar Now indicate that China is increasing its financial as well as political support for the regime

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