BEIJING (Reuters) – China will ensure security and stability at its border with Myanmar, the Chinese foreign ministry said on Friday, while urging all parties in Myanmar to immediately stop fighting.
The president of military-ruled Myanmar has said the country is at risk of breaking apart due to ineffective management of recent violence in its border regions with China.
The Myanmar junta is facing the biggest challenge to its authority since it seized power in a 2021 coup, with a surge in attacks by pro-democracy and ethnic minority insurgents on military bases in the north, northeast, northwest and southeast.
China has repeatedly called for the end of fighting and urged Myanmar to cooperate with China in maintaining stability on their common border, and to prevent further casualties.
There have been several reports of Chinese citizens being killed in clashes, and China has sent advisories to citizens in Myanmar to avoid areas where violence was prevalent.
“China is highly concerned about the conflict in northern Myanmar and urges all parties concerned in Myanmar to immediately cease fire and stop fighting, pay practical attention to China’s security concerns, and work with China to maintain the safety of China-Myanmar co-operation projects and business personnel,” foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said while fielding questions at a regular press briefing.
Last week, assistant Chinese foreign minister Nong Rong
visited Myanmar urging the country to take effective measures to strengthen the security for Chinese institutions and personnel there.
China imports fuel in gaseous form via a long-distance pipeline from Myanmar. Nong visited the Myanmar-China Gas Pipeline, part of China’s Belt and Road infrastructure and energy network, linking Ramree Island on the western coast of Myanmar with Chinese border city Ruili in southwestern Yunnan Province.
(Reporting by Beijing Newsroom; Writing by Bernard Orr; Editing by Christopher Cushing & Simon Cameron-Moore)
