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Thursday March 28, 2024

Xi holds extensive meetings with Myanmar leadership

By Muhammad Saleh Zaafir
January 19, 2020

ISLAMABAD: The China-Myanmar Economic Corridor (CMEC) under the Belt and Road framework has become the focus of China-Myanmar cooperation which will be jointly build by the two countries. Chinese President Xi Jinping concluded a two-day visit to Myanmar on Saturday where he had extensive meetings with the leadership of that country.

According to Chinese analysts Myanmar can get the needed stimulus in its economy, as well as create the strategic opportunities to expedite its economic growth by jointly building the CMEC with China. In fact, Myanmar's economy can register leapfrog growth if it can successfully co-build the CMEC. The Chinese are of the view that Myanmar has to build more power plants and improve its transportation infrastructure to accelerate economic growth. Especially, the shortage of electricity in Myanmar is seriously hindering its industrial development.

The first step toward building the CMEC is to build the China-Myanmar expressway and railway, a railway that extends from Kunming to Ruili in Yunnan province, across the border to Mandalay, and then west to Kyaukpyu in Rakhine state and southeast to Yangon. This will establish Myanmar's fundamental railway structure, which can later be extended to cover the entire country. The China-Myanmar oil and gas pipeline project connecting western Myanmar and Yunnan, which was built by China between 2013 and 2017, has not only become a source of new income and employment for Myanmar people, but also eased the demand for energy along the route. As such, the two countries are likely to deepen cooperation on energy under the CMEC framework, especially to strengthen Myanmar's power generation sector. According to the report the CMEC will promote Myanmar's trade. Myanmar's export to neighboring countries has been restricted due to poor transportation facilities. Which means the country needs to urgently improve its transport infrastructure in order to reduce transportation costs and increase the export of products such as rice and fruits to China. The CMEC will help propel the development of Myanmar's industry including the manufacturing sector, especially in the Mandalay Industrial Zone, New Yangon City, and the Kyaukpyu Special Economic Zone.

The improvement of transport infrastructure and building of more power plants will help Myanmar tap its full tourism potential, which could play an increasingly important role in facilitating Myanmar's economic takeoff. The CMEC is likely to attract more foreign capital; it will inject added vitality into Myanmar's economy.

Report has suggested that China, too, will benefit from the CMEC, the economic corridor will ensure energy security by opening a new energy transportation channel; and help establish a new pattern of further opening the Chinese economy in the new era, by facilitating the economic integration of China, Southeast Asia and South Asia. The report said that a top-level design for the CMEC's construction is already in place.

President Xi and Myanmar State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi reached a consensus on building the CMEC under the Belt and Road framework at the end of 2017. And in September 2018, the two sides signed the MoU on building the CMEC and established the CMEC joint committee, which held its first meeting in the same year and the second in 2019, indicating that a working mechanism for the CMEC, too, has been established. Several institutional arrangements have been made. For example, the arrangements for the China-Myanmar Border Economic Cooperation Zone are basically in place, with the central bank of Myanmar approving the Yuan as the official settlement currency, which will facilitate investment in CMEC projects, the report added. Besides, a number of major projects are progressing smoothly. Among them, the upgrading of the domestic section of the China-Myanmar Railway from Kunming to Dali has been completed, and the new section from Dali to Ruili is under construction.

On the other side of the border, work on the Muse-to-Mandalay section is on in full swing, the first construction phase of the Kyaukpyu Deep Sea Port has begun, and the New Yangon City project is progressing well. In addition, the energy pipeline and substation expansion projects in Yangon have been completed, industrial links strengthened, and cross-border trade has gained momentum. It is believed that on the conclusion of what appears to be a fruitful visit of President Xi to Myanmar, the construction of the CMEC will gather added pace. The CMEC is a huge project with a long development cycle requiring huge investments.

The United States and countries in Europe (especially the United Kingdom) and Asia, such as Japan, the Republic of Korea, India and a number of ASEAN member states have been investing in Myanmar, building the foundation for third-party market cooperation. The analysts opine that China and Myanmar should actively invite such countries to join the CMEC development platform, help build the corridor and reap mutual benefits through fair cooperation.