AA controls 10 of 11 Chinese projects in Arakan: research group

By Admin 28 Dec 2024

DMG Newsroom
28 December 2024, Mrauk-U

The Arakkha Army (AA) now fully or partially controls 10 out of 11 Chinese investment projects in Arakan State, according to the Institute for Strategy and Policy-Myanmar (ISP-Myanmar).

As of August 18, the AA partially controlled nine Chinese projects in Arakan State. Following the complete capture of Thandwe and Ann townships, the group took full control of wind power projects in those areas. The AA also partially controls other projects and trade routes.

The Chinese projects controlled by the AA as of December 24 include the natural gas pipeline; Kyaukphyu-Ann railway; Mandalay-Kyaukphyu railway; wind power project in Ann; Mandalay-Kyaukphyu highway; oil pipeline; Kyaukphyu deep-sea port and special economic zone; Kyaukphyu natural gas power project; Kyaukphyu-Naypyidaw highway; and wind power project in Thandwe.

“The regime has earned millions of dollars from those projects monthly. As the AA now controls them, it significantly bolsters their political leverage to negotiate with both the junta and China,” said a political analyst.

AA officials and Chinese authorities reportedly met in Tengchong, China, on December 1. However, the topics discussed have not been officially disclosed by either party.

The AA has officially welcomed foreign investments that benefit Arakan State. Meanwhile, military tensions have been running high between the ethnic armed group and the regime in Kyaukphyu, the site of multiple large-scale Chinese projects.

As of December 24, 13 out of 23 Chinese projects in central Myanmar and northern Shan State were fully controlled by ethnic armed organisations (EAOs) and People's Defense Forces (PDFs), according to ISP-Myanmar.

Among them are the Muse border economic cooperation zone; Kunlong Dam; Chin Shwe Haw border economic cooperation zone; Crown cement plant, Sinn Shwe Li sugar mills; Gokteik viaduct and new road project; and Tagaung nickel processing plant, among others.

In northern Shan State, EAOs partially control the Chinese-Myanmar oil and gas pipelines, cross-border power lines and the International Land-Sea Trade Corridor (ILSTC), as well as the Muse-Mandalay railway and trade routes with China.

“Anti-regime groups have seized one town after another, controlling foreign investment projects,” said one China observer. “The regime is facing defeats across the country, potentially forcing China to engage with those who control their investments.”