Burma's Surprising Geopolitical Importance

Yes, the title of this post says it all: Burma is surprisingly important to its neighbors, to international relations, and perhaps even to the United States.

Wha?

How?

How is this isolated pariah of an impoverished military state capable of playing any role in international politics whatsoever?

Burma doesn't even have rudimentary nuclear technology, which it could use to drunkenly threaten its neighbors (and don't you have to be wasted to seriously contemplate such a thing?)

In fact, most scholars agree that unlike the vaguely similar North Korea, Burma has very little power projection ability. Sure, it has an impressively manned military of 400,000-500,000 (the second largest in Southeast Asia), but its generally low morale and poor and outdated equipment make it no match for its regional counterparts. On the other hand, could it defend its own borders effectively? You better believe it.

But I digress, Burma's military has very little to do with why the country is important. Burma is important by virtue of its location between India, China, and Southeast Asia. It's massive raw materials, including natural gas and dwindling forests, also play a role, but Burma's real importance comes from its place as a subtle political battleground between its neighbors.

As one may guess, China, the 21st century's largest supporter of military regimes (step aside U.S.!) is Burma's biggest ally. In exchange for cheap raw materials, China provides Burma with military and technological aid, and most importantly, political support. If China were to actually put pressure on Burma's military junta like practically every other major world power, the junta would probably be forced to give ground to the country's democratic movement. But why would China want to do that?

China's unabashed support for Burma's military regime, and the resulting close relationship between the two countries, has of course been slightly scary for Burma's neighbors. Both India and ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) continue to have strong relations with their despicable neighbor, largely out of fear of completely pushing Burma into China's hands. It has even been suggested that this was the precise motivation for ASEAN to allow Burma to join the organization in 1997. This is not to say that India and ASEAN (especially Thailand) do not profit from economic relations, they do, but a fear of Burma acting as an extending arm of China plays the larger role.

The countries of Southeast Asia especially have much to fear as China has always shown great interest in influencing its southern neighbors. It is entirely possible that in the future it will come to dominate them economically, and maybe even politically.

How does this all impact the United States, still a global superpower? It all goes back to China. In America's mind, any gain for China is a loss for the United States since the U.S. seeks to handicap any regional leaders that could damage its world influence. The Chinese-Burmese relationship is at the very least disconcerting for pragmatic American policy makers.

So WOW! The scarcely covered country of Burma actually plays a role in world politics! Who would have thought? It all goes to show how even the most seemingly minuscule countries can have a major ripple effect. Till next time!