An analysis piece on BBC this evening provides a bit of background on China's role in Burma's current crisis.Nothing much happens in South East Asia without China having some say in the matter, and the Chinese specialize in maintaining relationships with pariah regimes (see North Korea, Pol Pot's Cambodia, and the current thugs in Burma as evidence). Mix in Burma's vast treasure-house of natural resources and Indian Ocean ports, and you will quickly see the Chinese have some serious matters at stake in the Golden Land.
And that doesn't even mention the prestige and image offensives China is currently waging in advance of next summer's Olympic Games.
However, so far, the Chinese have lost the power of speech, at least as far as their little Pyinmana buddies are concerned. There's zip, zero, nothing coming out of Beijing with "Burma" (or "Myanmar" for that matter) in the subject line.
That's for public consumption. What, we wonder, are the Chinese saying to the Burmese generals behind the scenes? Having been through similar circumstances way back in '89 themselves, and having screwed the PR pooch in the biggest possible way, I sorta doubt they're urging Than Shwe and his minions to gas up the armored divisions.
But, you never know...
As for other international reaction, apparently President Bush is set to announce a whole new set of sanctions against the Pyinmana thugs tomorrow at the UN. Before you start hollering, "Its not enough!", ask yourself what the US can really do here.
It's hard to shake the feeling that things are building towards a climax way over yonder. Have the Burmese people had it to the point where even violence isn't going to stop them? I sure hope we don't find out, but it's hard to see how else it goes down..
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