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No Ctg.- Kunming Connection: Burma Tells

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http://www.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=238515

Saturday, June 16, 2012
China shelves Ctg-Kunming rail link plan
Cites opposition from Myanmar as reason
Hasan Jahid Tusher, back from Kunming, Yunnan, China

China has shelved the proposed railway project between Chittagong and Kunming due to opposition from Myanmar.

However, China is good to go for the road project connecting the two countries to boost bilateral trade and commerce.

Highly placed Bangladesh government sources said the Myanmar government late last year suddenly refused to allow China to build the rail links through its territory, irking the Bangladeshi and Chinese governments.

Li Jeming, vice-minister for commerce of Yunnan provincial government, during a press briefing for Asian journalists in Kunming told The Daily Star, “We're always keen on establishing a rail link between Kunming and Chittagong, but we have to give up the idea for now as Myanmar is against it.”

Replying to The Daily Star, he said the Yunnan provincial government had even provided Myanmar with $2 billion financial support so that rail lines could be built on its territory.

He said they were now putting their attention on building railway link between Kunming and Laos, which he said would ultimately connect Thailand.

When a Myanmarese journalist asked if China could do anything to convince Myanmar, Li said, “We could do some work to make the government of Myanmar understand the need for rail lines and how they would benefit from it but it is not our major responsibility. Rather it is the people of Myanmar who must tell their government of their needs.”

If the Myanmar people realise this, their government might come forward, said the junior minister, adding that if the Chittagong-Kunming rail connectivity could be established, all three countries would benefit.

Meanwhile, LGRD and Cooperatives Minister Syed Ashraful Islam told The Daily Star that they have heard that Myanmar had been opposing the construction of rail link. He said the work for the road connectivity would go on.

Ashraf said a road show would be held in Kunming and Dhaka soon to tell people about the business opportunities the connectivity would create in the countries.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had urged China several times to construct the rail and road links between the two cities, which are considered by many as the Chinese gateway to South and South East Asia.

In March 2010, Hasina visited Kunming and expressed her interest in road and rail links between Chittagong and Kunming.

After her visit, Governor of Yunnan province Qin Guangrong expressed his government's desire to sign a Memorandum of Understanding with Bangladesh on road and rail communications between the two countries.

In October, 2010, Chinese Assistant Minister for Foreign Affairs Liu Zhen in Beijing said China would construct road and rail links between Chittagong and Kunming via Myanmar to boost Sino-Bangladesh cooperation.

Bangladesh, the same year, made a plan to build rail lines and roads up to the Myanmar border by 2014 at a cost of Tk 1,852 crore. The government had aimed at making a corridor for the proposed Trans-Asian Railway and connecting to Kunming through Myanmar.

However, highly placed government sources claimed that the rail project had been shelved in the interest of India, which opposed Bangladesh becoming connected to its powerful neighbour in the Far East.

They said the Prime Minister's Office would try to convince Myanmar and India to allow construction of the rail line in the greater interest of the region.

Yes, this is what I have been telling in all my posts that Burma is not that stupid to allow a link through its territory. Hope, our Myanmar lovers will now open their eyes.
 
Burmese are shrewd.. they already scammed 2 billion dollar from Chinese for this project.

Replying to The Daily Star, he said the Yunnan provincial government had even provided Myanmar with $2 billion financial support so that rail lines could be built on its territory.
 
They have no plans or intentions to become civilized any time soon. Only way to deal with them would be force for all nations around them. It is a mistake to play nice with them and give them a seat at international communities like ASEAN, UN etc.
 
This has been a total bakwas from certain quarters for some years. Burma has been embroiled in insurgencies all over. Except the central highland - Mandalay, Arryawardy and Rangoon areas, the central govt doesn't have total control anywhere.
 
This has been a total bakwas from certain quarters for some years. Burma has been embroiled in insurgencies all over. Except the central highland - Mandalay, Arryawardy and Rangoon areas, the central govt doesn't have total control anywhere.

Since Bamar's have armed the Rakhine Buddhists to slaughter Rohingya's which they are doing now while they sit back and watch, it is time for us to arm the Rohingya's to defend themselves and save their lives.
 
Burma has completely overplayed its hand.

The land connection to china was about importing chinese goods cheaply into Bangladesh. Its primary beneficiary would have been china due to easier penetration of its products into Bangladesh. This is against chinese interest and to some extent against Bangladesh in that our imports would not become cheaper in the short term. But as China is developing a port in Burma anyway, the import cost will fall in the medium run.
Bangladesh is also day by day producing products it imports and aligning itself to global economy both in terms of where we sell and buy our goods . Cunming connection was only about china, nothing more and as such this was always a nice to have and not an absolute must.

The status quo remains.

Burma is immature in its decision. Big deal.....live goes on....Bangladesh is not nepal.

Burma biggest friend in the region is china and it just bit the hand that feeds it.
 
This news is based on last year when relation and Myanmar internal political dynamics were different. Now maritime boundary dispute is gone and Myanmar is increasingly looking to improve its economy and status. Myanmar attitude is bound to change. Biggest obstacle will be india and indian instigation to wedge issues between Bangladesh and Myanmar.
 
well let us see aung san suu kyi move? Didn't she win a nobel prize? For what? she is the head of burma, right?
 
well let us see aung san suu kyi move? Didn't she win a nobel prize? For what?

For being the Drama Queen.

158748-myanmar-democracy-leader-aung-san-suu-kyi-and-her-son-kim-aris-pay-the.jpg


What a worthless woman.
 
This news is based on last year when relation and Myanmar internal political dynamics were different. Now maritime boundary dispute is gone and Myanmar is increasingly looking to improve its economy and status. Myanmar attitude is bound to change. Biggest obstacle will be india and indian instigation to wedge issues between Bangladesh and Myanmar.

With due respect, idune Bhai, the more I dig into this issue, the more I see that the Bamar majority of Burma/Myanmar will be major headache for ASEAN for decades to come. People do not change that easily, unless they are forced to. I think even Suu Kyi is also racist, just like the rest of her countrymen, or she is caring about her cheap popularity among these animals. Either way, she makes no difference to the situation on the ground.

Not sure if India was involved in this instigation, if they were, they screwed up big time, because if there is instability in the area, there goes their $130 million investment in Sittwe port for sea access of NE states, kaput and back to square one.
 
With due respect, idune Bhai, the more I dig into this issue, the more I see that the Bamar majority of Burma/Myanmar will be major headache for ASEAN for decades to come. People do not change that easily, unless they are forced to. I think even Suu Kyi is also racist, just like the rest of her countrymen, or she is caring about her cheap popularity among these animals. Either way, she makes no difference to the situation on the ground.

Not sure if India was involved in this instigation, if they were, they screwed up big time, because if there is instability in the area, there goes their $130 million investment in Sittwe port for sea access of NE states, kaput and back to square one.

I agree...India is looking for increasing the connectivity rather than preventing connectivity with the land locked region...So why India want an area to be disturbed when India is investing heavilty to develop infrastructure to fasciliate NE region....I beleive Myanmar Gov is playing some hard ball with international community to get some more bargaining chip ...
 
ASEAN + :lol:

With due respect, idune Bhai, the more I dig into this issue, the more I see that the Bamar majority of Burma/Myanmar will be major headache for ASEAN for decades to come. People do not change that easily, unless they are forced to. I think even Suu Kyi is also racist, just like the rest of her countrymen, or she is caring about her cheap popularity among these animals. Either way, she makes no difference to the situation on the ground.

Not sure if India was involved in this instigation, if they were, they screwed up big time, because if there is instability in the area, there goes their $130 million investment in Sittwe port for sea access of NE states, kaput and back to square one.

Thank you for your fake concern, we don't need strategic advise from rabid anti Indian Bangladeshis.
 

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