Myanmar to take BIMSTEC Secretary-General role in 2027; Min Aung Hlaing seeks Chinese investment

Myanmar to take BIMSTEC Secretary-General role in 2027

Regime leader Min Aung Hlaing met with the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) Secretary-General Indra Mani Pandey in Naypyidaw on Monday to discuss Burma taking on the bloc’s leadership role next year, regime media reported. Regime Foreign Minister Tin Maung Swe, President’s Office Minister Khin Maung Yi, and other regime officials.

Min Aung Hlaing described BIMSTEC as an organization that “fosters cooperation among member states without political interference,” and claimed that his administration had made efforts to hold “free and fair” elections. Pandey expressed confidence that Burma under Min Aung Hlaing would help BIMSTEC strengthen regional relations, promote socio-economic development, as well as peace and stability.

BIMSTEC includes Bangladesh, Bhutan, Burma, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Thailand and India, from which Pandey is from. The secretary-general serves a non-renewable three-year term under an alphabetical rotation among member states. Min Aung Hlaing attended the BIMSTEC summit in Bangkok in April 2025, where he met with the Thai and Indian Prime Ministers. He made an official visit to India May 30 to June 3.

Min Aung Hlaing seeks Chinese investment

During an interview with the Chinese government-affiliated broadcaster Phoenix TV on June 19, Min Aung Hlaing said that he expected Burma’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to double through China’s investment. He also stated that security and stability along the Burma-China border remains “weak,” adding that his military is making “significant efforts” to protect Chinese investments.

Jason Tower, a senior expert at the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime, told DVB that Beijing will “push harder” to stabilize Burma enough to allow infrastructure projects, including the China-Myanmar Economic Corridor (CMEC) that links China’s Yunnan Province to the Indian Ocean through Burma’s Kyaukphyu Township in Arakan State, to move forward.

China has remained Burma’s largest trading partner, with bilateral trade reaching about $19.4 billion USD in 2025, Chinese state media reported. China’s accumulated investment volume is $21.5 billion USD, accounting for 22.86 per cent of total investment up to April, according to the regime’s Directorate of Investment and Company Administration (DICA). Kyaukphyu is contested between the military and the Arakan Army (AA), which has seized control of 14 out of 17 Arakan townships.