Posted on January 3, 2024
“Beijing has been very keen on the Kyaukphyu Port project, with Chinese government officials pushing Myanmar to expedite the negotiation process. In May, Chinese ambassador to Myanmar Cheng Hai implored the junta’s legal affairs minister, Thidar Oo, to speed up the talks on development of the port project.
The port project is valued at $7.3 billion and an adjacent Special Economic Zone (SEZ) at $1.3 billion.
When complete, China’s Kyaukphyu port project will be the new southern terminus of the 1,700-kilometer China-Myanmar Economic Corridor (CMEC) connecting to the Chinese city of Kunming. The corridor will provide landlocked Yunnan Province with access to the Indian Ocean. It is also a strategic bypass for Chinese shipping to avoid the congested Malacca Strait, easing trade with the Middle East, Africa and Europe.
Besides its economic benefits, military analysts have also suggested that Kyaukphyu”
