Myanmar’s military and police confront protesters in Naypyidaw, Myanmar’s capital, on March 8.
Burma’s coup has triggered unrest in the country, a bloody crackdown by the military on people, and tough international sanctions. Lobbyists hired by the Burmese military recently revealed that the military leadership has begun to turn away from the Chinese Communist Party by trying to lean on the United States and the West. The developments in Myanmar suggest that the Chinese Communist Party is the loser in this coup.
Reuters reported on March 6 that a former Mossad officer hired by the Burmese military, Ali Bengali, had been arrested by the Chinese government for his role in the coup. Reuters reported on March 6 that Ari Ben-Menashe, a former Mossad officer hired by the Burmese military, had been killed in the coup. Ari Ben-Menashe, a former Mossad officer employed by the Burmese military, said military leaders want to leave politics after the coup, seek better relations with the United States and work to distance themselves from the Chinese Communist Party.
The Mossad, an Israeli intelligence organization, and Menashe, who is a dual Israeli-Canadian citizen, signed a proxy agreement with Myanmar’s junta defense minister Mya Tun Oo on March 4, according to materials registered with the U.S. Department of Justice by his lobbying firm Dickens & Madison on March 8. The agency contract was signed on March 4.
Menashe will lobby the U.S. executive and legislative branches to seek support and humanitarian assistance for the people of the Republic of the Union of Burma and to attempt to lift or modify the current sanctions.
In addition to the U.S., Menashe will also be required to help Burmese generals communicate with other countries and institutions, including the Saudis, the United Arab Emirates, Israel, the Russian Federation, the United Nations and the African Union.
Menashe defended the Burmese military by saying that the democratically elected Aung San Suu Kyi’s government tried to move closer to the Chinese Communist Party, contrary to the wishes of the Burmese military, whose leaders staged a coup in anger and discontent, arresting Aung San Suu Kyi and others.
In September 2018, Aung San Suu Kyi’s government signed a memorandum of understanding with the CCP to jointly build the China-Myanmar Economic Corridor. The two countries also signed a memorandum on cooperation on the feasibility study of the Mandalay-Kyaukpyu railroad during a visit to Myanmar by Chinese Communist Party Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Jan. 10 this year.
Myanmar wants to be close to the West and the United States, not China (Communist Party),” Menashe said. They don’t want to be a puppet of China (Communist Party).”
The Burmese military has not yet responded to Menashe’s statement, according to the Voice of America.
Foreign Lobby quoted Menashe as saying that some U.S. officials are “very interested” in the Burmese military’s willingness to reorient itself. U.S. officials are concerned that sanctions will push the military toward the Chinese Communist Party.
But Joshua Kranzke, a senior fellow for Southeast Asia at the Institute of Foreign Relations, said the military is “very interested” in a reorientation. Joshua Kurlantzick, a senior fellow for Southeast Asia at the Institute for Foreign Relations, argues that improving relations with the West is impossible as long as the military remains in power and continues its bloody crackdown on the population.
The U.S. has imposed two rounds of sanctions on military leaders since the Burmese military staged a coup on Feb. 1. Last month, President Biden announced sanctions against senior Burmese military generals, including Burma’s Defense Force chief Min Aung Hlaing, and froze more than $1 billion of Burmese funds in the United States.
On March 4, the U.S. Department of Commerce announced trade sanctions against the Burmese government following the junta’s shooting crackdown on protesters that left at least 50 people dead. The targets include Myanmar’s defense and Home ministries and two companies with close ties to the military: Myanmar Economic Corporation and Myanmar Economic Holdings Ltd.
Meanwhile, Australia, the United Kingdom and the European Union have all imposed sanctions on Burma, and Germany and New Zealand have suspended financial aid. And since the coup, the Chinese Communist Party has not only failed to condemn the Burmese military government, but has also obstructed the UN from taking tough action against the Burmese military.
On the eve of the coup, Chinese Communist Party Foreign Minister Wang Yi visited Burma in January and called each other brothers with military leader Min Aung Hlaing. Outsiders believe that the coup by the Burmese military may have had the tacit approval and support of the Chinese Communist Party. Burmese media also disclosed that the CCP provided equipment and personnel to help the Burmese military and control the network.
The Chinese Communist Party’s collusion with the military government has provoked discontent among the Burmese people. Protesters have put up banners and slogans against the Chinese Communist Party and have continued to protest outside the Chinese Communist Embassy in Burma.
Myanmar’s Irrawaddy newspaper (The Irrawaddy) revealed on March 8 that a leak from Myanmar’s Foreign Ministry indicated that the CCP wanted the Burmese military government to put pressure on the Burmese media to cut down on public skepticism of the CCP. In addition, after the coup in Burma, the Chinese Communist Party expressed great concern about the security of the China-Myanmar oil and gas pipeline in Burma.
Leaked information obtained by the Voice of America shows that on February 23, the director general of the Foreign Affairs Department of the CCP Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the CCP ambassador to Burma, Chen Hai, held an emergency video meeting with Burmese military Foreign Ministry officials and police chiefs.
During the meeting, CCP officials were concerned about the China-Myanmar oil and gas pipeline, while Burmese officials said the pipeline was too long, some 800 kilometers, to be foolproof. Currently, Burmese government and local security officials check the safety of the pipeline every two days.
The latest report on March 9 said that the Burmese diplomatic official who leaked the meeting materials has now been apprehended by the military government.
The news has provoked strong public outrage in Myanmar, with some million Burmese taking to Facebook and Twitter to say that Communist Party officials view Burmese casualties as Myanmar’s own internal affair and Beijing‘s interests above all else.
One user, JAONNAY, tweeted, “Hey CCP, if you still see what’s happening in Burma now as ‘internal affairs,’ then blowing up a gas pipeline in Burma is also our ‘internal affairs. ‘. Let’s see what you say (when the Time comes).”
Another netizen named Kyaw Myint Thein said, “Communist China, if you use your veto in the UN Security Council, we can make sure you don’t lose the gas pipeline in Burma.”
After the coup by the Burmese military, the Chinese Communist Party has been defending the military government on the grounds of “non-interference in internal affairs. However, the military’s sudden turnaround and developments in Burma suggest that the CCP could be the loser of the coup.
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