There was no second-guessing why China’s President Xi Jinping made Myanmar his first stop in a visit earlier this year, even as coronavirus was mercilessly gripping his nation: China has never ceased worrying about reliable supplies of gas, and the prospect of a pipeline with Myanmar is an attractive one.
For years, since relations with the West cooled, Beijing has been conscious of suffering a disruption in supplies if war ever broke out. A pipeline could well be the saviour by insulating the country from such a scenario.
Significantly though, is the ease and cost-effectiveness that such a pipeline could add.
... to continue reading you must be subscribed
