Author: Nida Nasim

China anchors its strategy in infrastructure and resource security, focusing on pipelines, ports, and rare earths through the China–Myanmar Economic Corridor (CMEC). The U.S. counters with sanctions, aid, and opposition support, seeking to limit Beijing’s access to the Indian Ocean and push for democratic reform. Ethnic conflicts, including Operation 1027 and the Rohingya crisis, now overlap with great power competition, intensifying instability. Myanmar’s trajectory mirrors Pakistan’s strategic dilemma, where location, instability, and military dominance make both states test cases in global rivalry. With a 1,930 km coastline on the Bay of Bengal and borders with China, India, Laos, and Thailand,…