Beijing: Burma opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi met Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday during a visit to Beijing. The trip is aimed at building ties with her country’s powerful neighbour. China’s Xinhua News said Xi told Suu Kyi that “we appreciate your willingness to boost China-Myanmar ties.” No public events are scheduled during Suu Kyi’s low-key five-day visit.
China hopes to use the meetings to shore up its declining influence in Myanmar following democratic reforms that have seen the Southeast Asian country shift away from Beijing toward Western nations, Japan and other potential investors.
Citizens in Burma have stalled a Chinese-backed dam and other projects out of environmental concerns, part of a backlash against China’s economic domination of its poor southern neighbor. China considers Burma strategically important as a gateway to the Indian Ocean and Bay of Bengal, and wants to secure oil and gas pipelines in its Southeast Asian neighbour.
