Chinese Premier’s visit to Myanmar to Open New Page in Bilateral Relations, Human Rights Abuses
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Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao’s forthcoming visit to Myanmar will have a profound significance on the traditional friendship between the two countries and further boost bilateral cooperative ties, said Chinese ambassador to Myanmar Ye Dabo.
Premier Wen will start a two-day visit to Myanmar on Wednesday, on the ‘occasion‘ of the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and Myanmar.
During his visit, Wen will meet Myanmar’s top leader Senior-General Than Shwe, Prime Minister U Thein Sein and other government officials. The two sides will sign a package of documents aimed at strengthening economic and trade cooperation, Ye told Xinhua.
What is truly astonishing is not simply that the meeting is being hailed as near-joyous by both the Chinese and Myanmar diplomatic communities, but that is critically coincides with the Chinese government being pressured to take a firm international stance on the growing North and South Korean dispute. Watching China’s instant condemnation of the Israeli assault on an aid flotilla bound for Gaza, South Koreans must be wondering more than ever if rather than when China will muster a clear response to their own nautical tragedy.
“We believe that Premier Wen’s visit is bound to create positive and far-reaching influence on Sino-Myanmar relations and could open up a new page of Sino-Myanmar good-neighborly and friendly cooperation,” he said.
China values its traditional friendship with Myanmar, wishes to further boost cooperation in all areas and hopes that the two countries will always be good neighbors, good friends and good partners, Ye said. However when human rights are fundamentally pushed to the wayside at every turn, questions begin to really build when referencing the growing superpower, its controversial ties and its prospective geopolitical strategy.
The Myanmar government has always stuck to the “one China” principle, and stood by the Chinese government in dealing with major issues pertaining to China’s core interests. China has always supported the Myanmar government in its efforts to safeguard the country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, and unfortunately so for the millions calling for independence in Tibet and the thousands cut off from communicative access from right within the heart of China.
China sincerely hopes Myanmar to be politically stable, democratically progressive, nationally reconciled, economically developed and socially harmonious, he said. To say the future of democracy in Myanmar is clouded by the ruling junta’s dire clutch to authority and rampant use of political persecutions as weapons in their defense.
Ye said the two sides have closely coordinated in international and regional affairs and cooperation has been strengthened in economics and trade, culture, education, religion, military affairs as well as combating transnational crimes.
China now stands as Myanmar’s third largest trading partner and investor. In 2009, bilateral trade totaled 2.907 billion U.S. dollars. Up to January 2010, China’s investment in Myanmar amounted to 1.848 billion dollars, accounting for 11.5 percent of Myanmar’s total foreign investment, he said.
In recent years, the two sides have expanded cooperation in the sectors of hydropower, energy, mining, communications, fishery, manufacturing and infrastructure, and have made frequent exchanges in culture, news and sports, Ye said.