Beijing – He military dam in Myanmar and the arrest of Aung San Suu Kyi was “a major reshuffle of the cabinet” according to Chinese state media, which displayed euphemisms to avoid calling it a coup. While democratic leaders around the world assassinated the Burmese military and President Joe Biden said the US was “taking note” of who was defending the people of Myanmar, Communist leadership of China he took a gentle, gentle approach.
Beijing called on all parts of Myanmar to “resolve their differences,” and the official Xinhua news agency on Monday described the military replacing elected ministers after the coup as a “major cabinet reshuffle.”
Meanwhile, the nationalist Global Times quoted unnamed experts as saying that the generals’ takeover could be seen as “an adjustment to the country’s dysfunctional power structure.”
Thein Zaw / AP
The newspaper, known for its scathing comments against critics of China, also took the opportunity to take a look at former U.S. President Donald Trump, whose combative approach to Beijing had reduced ties between the United States and China in its decades.
“Some experts mentioned that … Trump, who refused to admit his electoral defeat and reportedly caused the Capitol riots, could be Myanmar military inspiration“, he wrote.
Beijing has long rejected what it considers an interference in its “internal affairs,” such as criticism of its human rights record, and has taken a similarly neutral stance on most foreign affairs.
Myanmar is also a vital part of Beijing’s huge road infrastructure and belt initiative. President Xi Jinping visited the country last January and vowed to support the Myanmar government on a path of development “appropriate to its own national conditions.”
China, the UN and leverage
European officials, on the other hand, were quick to condemn the takeover, unequivocally calling it a coup. Many others, including President Biden in the United States and the head of the United Nations, criticized the actions of the military and called for an immediate restoration of democracy in Myanmar, but did not use the word “coup.”
The use of the label could have legal implications for the U.S. government’s ability to provide assistance to the people of Myanmar and, with the UN Security Council reaching out to address the issue on Tuesday, the Biden’s administration seemed to be waiting to gather support for a coordinated international response.
Myanmar’s army has justified its seizure by alleging widespread fraud in the elections held three months ago that the NLD won by current. He has imposed a state of emergency for a year, after which he says he will hold new elections.
So far, China, and to some extent a little less Russia, have been the only nations willing to defend the actions of the army in Myanmar, formerly known as Burma and still called by the U.S. government. .
AP
Russia used extremely soft rhetoric to describe the acquisition of the army, suggesting it was just an internal disagreement over “the differences that arose after the results of the parliamentary elections.”
“We expect a peaceful settlement of the situation in accordance with current legislation through the resumption of political dialogue,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Monday, adding that it “paid attention to the statement by the military authorities on its intention to hold new parliamentary elections within a year “.
Crucially, as permanent members of the UN Security Council, both China and Russia exercise veto power over any proposed resolution in this body, so they could thwart efforts by other countries to impose multilateral sanctions to the military regime in Myanmar, or even to formally label their actions as a coup.
The UK holds the rotating presidency of the Security Council during the month of February and therefore heads the agenda and chose to keep Tuesday’s meeting closed in what is known as “consultations,” it reports. Pamela Falk of CBS News with a briefing from Christine Schraner Burgener, a special envoy to Myanmar, who has already been “actively engaged” on the ground, the UK said.
Keeping the meeting closed could soften any tense exchanges and lead to a 15-country Council statement, which, while not applicable, would send a message to Myanmar’s military rulers.
“We will see any range of measures,” UK Ambassador Barbara Woodward told Falk during a press exchange on Monday. The British envoy, who will chair Tuesday’s meeting, served as the UK’s ambassador to China between 2015 and 2020 and has significant country-related experience as world leaders try to shape the country’s next steps. their response and possibly call for the release of Suu Kyi and other political leaders.
The United States can also act unilaterally and the Biden administration has promised to “take action against those responsible” if the Burmese military fails to “reverse these actions immediately.”
But, as Asian analysts at the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies wrote in a note Monday about Myanmar, the U.S. government’s leverage on the new military leadership is limited by Washington’s small investment in country.
“Despite opening a decade, U.S. companies remain relatively modest players in Myanmar’s economy,” CSIS analysts said. “Those who have invested are mainly focused on providing goods and services to Myanmar’s internal market, which means that their exit will mainly harm private citizens. US companies have moved away from the natural resource extraction sectors. and commodity exports in which the army is very strong. invested “.
Analysts said the effectiveness of any punitive measures imposed by Washington will depend on the support of other Asian nations, which have closer trade ties with Myanmar. However, this support, even from close allies, can be difficult to solidify.
“It will be more difficult for the United States to get major investors in Myanmar, such as Japan and Singapore, to do the same. And Myanmar’s main foreign player in the economy, China, will be too happy to recalibrate its commitment to recognize the new facts on the ground, ”the CSIS said. “This will likely soften the blow of any US sanctions.”