The US has lifted or suspended most of its economic sanctions. This, in turn, paves the way for aid, investment and advice from the US, its allies, and multilateral financial institutions. For US and Western firms Myanmar holds the promise of rapid-growth investment opportunities in an underserved market of 60 million people. But behind these positive developments lurks a danger: the sensitivity and potential reaction of China, Myanmar’s neighbour to the north, to increased US involvement. For China, the relationship with Myanmar has economic and strategic value. Myanmar is a market for Chinese goods. Myanmar also supplies or will supply China with primary products ranging from agricultural and fisheries to minerals and natural gas.
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