Beijing signs 18 deals with Myanmar’s Min Aung Hlaing, holds back on stalled megaprojects

Mizzima

Myanmar junta chief Min Aung Hlaing met Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on 16 June, signing 18 cooperation documents on transportation, health, and media — but reaching no agreements on the China-Myanmar Economic Corridor’s two flagship projects, the Kyaukphyu deep-sea port and the Muse-Mandalay railway, both stalled since the 2021 coup triggered a civil war.

Instead, Min Aung Hlaing pledged that Myanmar would “make every effort” to ensure the safety of Chinese enterprises and personnel in the country, according to Xinhua.

Xi received the junta chief with a 21-gun salute on Tiananmen Square and a guard of honour inspection at the Great Hall of the People, according to CCTV. The honours placed him in the same protocol tier as US President Donald Trump, who visited Beijing last month, and the King of Thailand, who received identical treatment in November 2025.

The United States, European Union, and United Kingdom have each refused to recognise Min Aung Hlaing as a legitimate head of state, describing the November 2025 elections that led to his April inauguration as neither free nor fair.

The 18 documents covered cross-border transportation in the Greater Mekong Subregion, free trade, disaster relief, health, and media cooperation. Xi called on both sides to advance key corridor projects “with ensured security” — framing infrastructure progress as contingent on stability guarantees from Naypyidaw. He also said China “firmly supports Myanmar in safeguarding its sovereignty and territorial integrity” and pledged increased support for post-earthquake reconstruction. Min Aung Hlaing reaffirmed Myanmar’s adherence to the one-China principle and expressed support for Xi’s four major global initiatives, Xinhua reported.

The visit continued a pattern in Beijing’s calibration of Min Aung Hlaing’s title across successive trips. At his first visit to China since the coup, in Kunming in November 2024, state media called him “Myanmar leader.” At the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in Tianjin in August 2025, Beijing used “acting president.” On Tuesday, he was received as “president” with full head-of-state honours.

The closed-door talks lasted less than an hour, according to Reuters. Min Aung Hlaing remains in China until Friday and is expected to meet Premier Li Qiang and National People’s Congress Chairman Zhao Leji, according to Beijing’s foreign ministry.

The visit came against the backdrop of the detention of Min Zin, a dual US-Myanmar citizen and Executive Director of the Institute for Strategy and Policy-Myanmar (ISP-Myanmar), a think tank whose work has included analysis of Chinese influence along the Myanmar border. Min Zin was arrested at Kunming airport on 3 June. China’s foreign ministry confirmed the detention on 12 June, citing allegations of espionage — three days before Min Aung Hlaing arrived in Beijing.