NAYPYIDAW
China and Myanmar have pledged to expand trade and security ties, especially along their border, during talks in the Southeast Asian nation with its junta chief-turned-president and both countries’ top diplomats, the two governments said.
China’s Wang Yi has been on a three-country visit to Southeast Asia, traveling to Cambodia, Thailand and Myanmar this week, seeking to strengthen ties and present Beijing as a more stable alternative to Washington.
China will “firmly support” Myanmar in safeguarding its national sovereignty and security, Wang told Myanmar’s leader Min Aung Hlaing during a meeting in the capital Naypyidaw on April 25, according to a Chinese foreign ministry readout.
“As this year marks the first year of the new Myanmar government’s tenure, both sides should seize this opportunity to carry forward and promote their traditional friendship,” Wang said.
In a meeting with Myanmar’s Foreign Minister Tin Maung Swe on April 25, Wang called for joint efforts to “enhance cooperation” in electricity, oil and gas, expand bilateral trade and investments, and “deepen security collaboration” to maintain stability along their border, according to a Chinese Foreign Ministry statement.
Myanmar’s state-run Global New Light of Myanmar yesterday also said the meetings emphasized further cooperation in the “stability of border regions, facilitating smooth, swift, and efficient trade flows and the efforts to restore the internal peace process.”
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