Burmese Oil Excites China, India
Natural Gas and Oil Make Burma a More Appealing Friend
Jul 25, 2007
The Chinese government has supported the Myanmarese (Burmese) military junta for decades, both through supplying it with necessary resources including weapons but also by providing diplomatic support in the United Nations Security Council. China’s veto has been regularly employed in the Council to block action that might be taken against the dreadful human rights record of the Burmese generals. The reasons why China should behave this way are clear: a collapse of the state of Myanmar, where several armed insurgencies are already underway, would lead to chaos on China’s southern border. The border region is porous and its people have suffered in the past from the smuggling of illegal drugs by insurgent groups looking for cash to support their struggle for independence. China has countered the threat both by bolstering the central government and also be encouraging Chinese to invest in the north of Myanmar, to spread stability by providing people there with powerful incentives for keeping the peace. Many visitors to the previous northern capital of Mandalay, close to the Chinese border, report that it and the whole area are now Chinese-controlled in all but name.
The recent discovery of natural gas and oil in the Shwe field in the Bay of Bengal intensified the motivation for stability to the south. China’s need for oil and reliance on imports is well-known. With most oil imports arriving on tankers that must pass through the Straits of Malacca – which could be easily closed by permanently available US naval forces – the desire for diversification of sources is very powerful. One result of this is that a pipeline has been built from Myanmar into China and a recent announcement was made that 6.5 trillion cubic feet of natural gas would be made available to the Chinese.
At the same time, India has also been expressing continuing interest in Myanmar’s resources. Indian announcements of substantial finds of gas have since been cut by 90% and the country faces severe shortages of power to fuel its further rapid economic development. The outbreak of violence across the poor and neglected northeastern region of the country, as well as problems with neighbouring Bangladesh, have also led to problems with security that a nice new pipeline and its attendant wealth would help to ease. That explains why high-powered Indian delegations are now courting the Myanmarese generals and are offering, it is alleged, advanced military helicopters in contravention of the twenty-year old European Union-led embargo. The stakes are very high.
