pacific forum History of Pacific Forum

PacNet #75 – China: A Hidden Danger in Myanmar’s Reform Process

US President Barack Obama visited Myanmar in late November. This milestone is one of many over the last year plus of reform for the once pariah state. These reforms and the consequent improvement of US-Myanmar relations appear to be an unalloyed good. In the last year, the reform government of Myanmar President Thein Sein has released many political prisoners, allowed progressively greater political participation by the democratic opposition and made significant progress toward ending ethnic insurgencies that have troubled the country for decades.