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Open corridor pitch
Chinese Ambassador to Bangladesh Yao Wen said China will keep the Bangladesh-Myanmar economic corridor open to other countries, while insisting Beijing is determined to proceed with Bangladesh and Myanmar.
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Speaking during a press briefing in Dhaka after Prime Minister Tarique Rahman's visit to China from 22-26 June, Yao told reporters, "This cooperation is not the end of the game. We are open."
Yao added that the corridor is aimed at connectivity and economic cooperation, saying, "This is purely a connectivity project. Our entire purpose is regional economic cooperation."
The proposal, revived during Tarique Rahman's recent visit to Beijing, links China’s south-western Yunnan Province with Myanmar and then connects to Bangladesh through road and railway networks, with the route beginning in Kunming and passing through Mandalay in Myanmar.
bdnews24 said the concept of a China-Myanmar-Bangladesh Economic Corridor is part of China’s Belt and Road Initiative, and it would connect Rakhine to Chattogram and Cox's Bazar through road and railway networks.
Regional talks and scope
The corridor proposal was framed as a successor to the earlier Bangladesh-China-India-Myanmar Economic Corridor, with Yao Wen saying China proposed BCIM "about 15 years ago" and that it did not achieve the results China had expected.
Yao said Bangladesh, China and Myanmar all wanted greater regional connectivity and that the three countries could begin cooperation with the existing framework, while participation would depend on whether other countries wanted to join immediately or take a wait-and-see approach.
In parallel, the Chinese and Bangladeshi leaders announced a China-Bangladesh Community of Shared Future in the New Era after Xi Jinping met Tarique Rahman, with Xi saying China is ready to promote the development of the China-Myanmar-Bangladesh Economic Corridor to improve regional connectivity.
The Daily Star reported that on June 27 Foreign Minister Khalilur Rahman said Bangladesh was "currently examining" the proposal and had "taken no position" on it, while any overland connectivity through Myanmar would be conditional on the restoration of peace and stability in Rakhine State.
The Daily Star also described the corridor’s backbone as spanning approximately 1,700 kilometres from Kunming to Myanmar’s coast, with the extension to Bangladesh adding further distance.
What’s at stake
China’s corridor push is tied to broader connectivity and investment expectations, with the Business Standard quoting Commerce, Industries, Textiles and Jute Minister Khandakar Abdul Muktadir saying Bangladesh can transport goods to China within 24 hours by road if it becomes part of the China-Myanmar economic corridor.
“- More China and Bangladesh announce the construction of a Community of Shared Future in the New Era”
Muktadir also said the cabinet approved the establishment of an 800-acre Chinese industrial park in Chattogram, and he expected it to help strengthen bilateral economic ties.
The Daily Star said the corridor’s viability depends on the political and security situation in Myanmar, noting that Rakhine State is now largely outside the effective control of Myanmar’s military government and that the Arakan Army controls about 14 of the state’s 17 townships.
It further reported that Kyaukphyu is under active siege conditions, with Arakan Army forces fighting within approximately two kilometres of key junta naval bases and infrastructure, and that a China-backed power plant at Kyaukphyu was progressively dismantled and relocated beginning in late 2024.
Against that backdrop, bdnews24 said the proposal would begin in Kunming, pass through Mandalay, and then connect Rakhine to Chattogram and Cox's Bazar through road and railway networks, with part of the route passing through Myanmar’s conflict-hit Rakhine State.
