POREG VIEW: Myanmar is doing a balance act in its relations between China and India. This much becomes amply clear from the on-going visit of Myanmar’s strong man, Senior General, Than Shwe. The head of Myanmar’s ruling junta started his five-day journey significantly enough by meeting Gen. Chen Bingde, Chief of the General Staff of the Peoples Liberation Army (PLA). These discussions were followed by meetings with President Hu Jintao, Prime Minister Wen Jiabao and Chairman of the National Peoples Congress. 

The visit of Than Shwe is mainly seen as part of an effort to brief the Chinese leadership on the changes being implemented towards election on November 7.  Earlier in July, Than Shwe was on a similar visit to India where he has taken the Indian leadership into confidence to give a sense of his “electoral reforms”. 

Notwithstanding strong economic and military partnership with China, the Myanmar leader was eager to balance these ties with that of India.  The relationship with China is much deeper and much wider, but recognition and approval of Indian leadership to his electoral reforms is considered to be far more important to Myanmar in terms of sending a message to the western world. 

This is Shwe’s third visit to China, the last being in the year 2003. His July visit to India was the second, the first being in the year 2004.

Just as he was touring some show pieces of economic growth like Shanghai Expo and Schenzhen during his China sojourn, Than Shwe went around India’s centres of success like Hyderabad and Jamshedpur during his India visit.

Much of Myanmar’s interaction with India is confined to economic cooperation. Its relations with China are also moving strongly in the defence sector.  The recent docking of two Chinese naval ships at the Myanmar Port of Thilawa for the first time gives a sense of growing trend of relationship.  China is building a deep see port at Chitwe. The port will give great leverage to China in securing its energy supplies through the Indian Ocean and Malacca straits.