Part of BRI’: Chinese developer contradicts Beijing’s stand on ‘new city’ project on Myanmar-Thailand border
Locals have criticised the Chinese project citing lack of transparency over the scale of construction and the increasing influx of Chinese migrants.

Key Highlights
- The project in Myanmar’s Karen is locally known as ‘Shwe Kokko New City’ after the village where it is situated
- It was launched in 2017 by the Yatai International Holdings Group in a deal with the ethnic Karen armed group – the Border Guard Force
- The company also has alleged links to illegal cryptocurrency and casino operations, locals claim
Yangon: China is yet again in another soup after one of its real estate developers and the country’s establishment have given contradictory statements on a project that’s coming up on the Myanmar-Thailand border under Beijing’s controversial Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).
The developer of a ‘new city’ project on the border has claimed that the development is part of BRI despite the Chinese Embassy in Yangon denying it in an official statement.
The project in Myanmar’s Karen is locally known as ‘Shwe Kokko New City’ after the village where it is situated. It was launched in 2017 by the Yatai International Holdings Group (YIHG) in a deal with the ethnic Karen armed group – the Border Guard Force (BGF), according to the publication The Irrawaddy.
Locals have criticised the Chinese project citing lack of transparency over the scale of construction and the increasing influx of Chinese migrants. Furthermore, the company also has alleged links to illegal cryptocurrency and casino operations.
However, the developer asserted that the $15 billion project was part of BRI, which also includes several other projects in Myanmar.
Interestingly, the YIHG said in a bizarre statement on its WeChat account, “This project is not the act of the Chinese government, but is still in service of the Belt and Road Initiative.”
https://www.timesnownews.com/international/article/belt-and-road-initiative-chinese-developer-contradicts-beijing-stand-on-shwe-kokko-new-city-project-on-myanmar-thailand-border/646618
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