Beijing, Nov 25 (EFE).- China’s military on Saturday announced “combat training” drills on its side of the border with Myanmar amid growing insecurity in the region that has caused concern in Beijing.
“The Southern Theater Command of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army organized army troops to conduct actual combat training activities…starting November 25,” the Chinese military said in a brief statement released on the Weibo social media platform.
The exercises are “designed to test the rapid maneuverability, border sealing and fire strike capabilities of the theater troops,” it added.
“Troops in the theater are always prepared to respond to various emergencies and resolutely safeguard national sovereignty, border stability and the safety of people’s lives and property,” the military said.
The statement did not offer details on when the drills would conclude or the number of troops that would take part in them.
The announcement comes shortly after a convoy of trucks carrying goods from China to Myanmar burst into flames in what state media, such as The Global New Light of Myanmar newspaper, controlled by the ruling military junta, described as an insurgent attack.
China’s ambassador to Myanmar met senior officials in the capital of Naypyidaw on Thursday to talk about stability at the border, in the midst of a rebel offensive from the border with China that has raised doubts about the relationship between both countries.
In the meeting, Ambassador Chen Hai and a delegation led by deputy prime minister and foreign minister of the Myanmar junta, U Than Swe, discussed “cooperation in peace and stability and rule of law along the border areas,” the Burmese newspaper reported.
An offensive was launched in Myanmar’s Kokang area, with ethnic Chinese roots, by several ethnic minority guerrillas – some with links to China – and pro-democracy militias on Oct. 27, named Operation 1027.
The rebels have since claimed positions from the Myanmar army – Tatmadaw – in the northeast, center and northwest of the country, bordering China and India.
China and Myanmar share a 2,129 kilometer (1,323 mile) long border, and although Beijing increased its influence in the country after the February 2021 coup with which the junta seized power in Myanmar, its relationship with the military is complex.
Some guerrillas – including those involved in this operation – have a long history of ethnic, economic and military ties with the world’s second largest economy.
Beijing has sent senior officials to Myanmar in recent weeks and urged a de-escalation of violence. EFE
