高航 许俊豪

2020年是中缅建交70周年，中国国家主席习近平在年初对缅甸进行历史性访问，开启了中缅关系新时代。同时，从2020年初至今，中缅两国也受到了新冠肺炎疫情带来的诸多挑战。进入新时代的中缅关系在疫情挑战下如何发展？

在中缅建交70周年纪念日来临之际，中国驻缅甸大使陈海接受了《中国—东盟博览》杂志的专访。访问一开始，陈海就说道：“最近深有体会的是习近平主席在今年中国两会中向政协委员说过的两句话，‘在危机中育新机，于变局中开新局。这对于中缅关系和双方构建命运共同体来说，也是如此。”进入新时代的中缅关系前景广阔，大有可为。

携手抗疫，进一步夯实双边友好

中缅有延绵千年的胞波情谊和患难与共的优良传统。疫情一开始，中缅两国就成为了携手抗疫的亲密伙伴。中国在疫情严重的时候，得到了来自缅甸政府、军队和社会各界的大力支持，其中缅甸军队在自身医疗物资不充裕的情况下，仍专门派军机运送医疗物资援助。而缅甸疫情爆发后，中国不仅为缅甸提供了数批急需的抗疫物资，还先后派出三批医疗专家组援助缅甸，为缅甸提供了核酸检测设备和实验室、培训了一大批医务工作者，有效提升了缅甸防控疫情的能力。

“缅甸在防疫方面能力有限、压力很大。但这次在缅甸国务资政昂山素季领导下，缅甸中央防控疫情机制开展了有力、有效的工作。截至2020年6月，确诊病例只有200多例。”陈海说道，“在一个拥有近6000万人口，医疗基础条件相对薄弱的国家，这样的防疫成绩来之不易。”

5月28日，缅甸国际合作部部长觉丁与陈海通电话时，再次代表缅甸政府向来自中国各方面的支持和帮助表示感谢。“这些感谢我相信不是虚的，它是以实际行动为基础的，切实体现了中缅的‘胞波兄弟之情、伙伴之情、邻居之义，以及命运共同体的内涵。”陈海说道。

陈海表示，这次的抗疫合作，成为进一步夯实中缅友好关系的一个重要契机。“我们将用好这样的契机，把更多工作扎实地做到缅甸社会各阶层。今年中国将全面建成小康社会，我们要带动缅甸的发展，让缅甸同我们一起共奔小康。”陈海说道。

中缅经济走廊建设开拓新局面

2020年，为如期全面建成小康社会，中国面临着“六稳六保”的任务。同样，缅甸在抗疫背景下经济社会发展也面临很大困难，需要稳就业、稳民生。受疫情影响，大量的缅籍务工人员从泰国、中国的边境省份返乡，大量的项目又处于停工状态，稳增长的压力非常大。今年又是缅甸的大选年，要选出新一届的议会和国家领导机构。

“在这种情况下，缅甸既要通过自身努力，也要依靠来自国外的经贸投资来促进经济、民生的脱困和发展，中国也进一步成为对缅甸提供支持的重要合作伙伴。”陈海说道。

2020年初，习近平主席在访问缅甸期间，中缅双方达成了包括构建中缅命运共同体在内的诸多重要共识，也促进了中缅经济走廊从概念规划转入实质建设阶段。据陈海介绍，近期中国驻缅甸大使馆在中国国内的支持下，推进中缅经济走廊建设取得积极进展，尤其是中缅经济走廊框架下的3个重要项目：瑞丽—木姐边境经济合作区、皎漂深水港和相关经济特区及仰光新城项目。

例如瑞丽—木姐边境经济合作区项目，中缅双方的工作组已经确定在6月进行对接，并且争取早日形成边境合作区规划，为“后疫情时期”启动建设打下基础。另外，皎漂深水港和经济特区、仰光新城项目在规划合作等方面也在取得扎实进展。

“我相信这些重大项目的启动，对于提振缅甸社会各界的信心、带动缅甸的就业和经济增长将发挥重要作用。除此以外，交通、电力互联互通等其他一些项目，我们也在推动。可以看出，在疫情的影响下，中缅经济走廊的合作没有停滞，而是在孕育新机、向前发展。”陈海说道。

相互支持，共同反对外来干涉

“当今世界正在经历百年未有之大变局，在疫情下，这样的变局正在进一步演变。”陈海说道。当今国际关系中不公正不平等现象依然突出，包括中缅在内的发展中国家在维护各自主权、安全、发展利益方面面临新的挑战。

中缅两国作为建交70年的友好邻国，早在20世纪50年代就共同倡导了和平共处五项原则，这些原则在今天的大变局中仍然焕发着强大的生命力。在涉及彼此核心利益和重大关切问题上，中缅两国始终相互支持、相互理解。习近平主席在访问缅甸期间，同缅甸领导人进一步达成了共同反对外来干涉的共识。

最近一段时间以来，少数国家和部分势力就涉港问题不断挑事。5月28日，缅甸国际合作部部长觉丁代表缅甸支持中国出于维护国家安全，针对香港进行相关立法的举措，明确表达了支持“一国两制”、支持香港繁荣稳定的立场。

同样，当缅甸的和平与发展受到一些西方势力的干涉时，中方也根据缅方关切的问题的是非曲直，在若开邦等问题上为缅方主持公道，发挥了建设性作用。

“我想這些都是在国际和地区形势纷繁复杂的变化中，中缅双方可以加强合作，也正在加强合作的地方。”陈海说道。

期待东博会走进缅甸

谈及中国—东盟博览会（以下简称东博会），曾经在东博会秘书处任职、并参与东博会筹划和举办的陈海对东博会有着特殊的感情，也给予很高的评价。“16年来，东博会已经成为促进中国与东盟友好交流、经贸往来及多领域合作的重要平台，以及中国与东盟国家增进政治互信的桥梁纽带。”陈海说道。

在新的形势下，中国与东盟的关系、东博会的平台作用变得更加重要。陈海不仅期待着第17届东博会再次取得丰硕的成果，也表示欢迎东博会在合适的时候走进缅甸。

“缅甸是东盟的重要成员，在东盟范围内可以说是人口众多、资源丰富，有后发优势。缅甸政府也高度重视东博会，缅甸商务部把东博会列为每年重点支持的展会之一，工商界参展热情高涨，参展参会规模逐年扩大，取得了良好成效，缅甸的珠宝玉石、咖啡茶叶、芒果等产品在中国广受欢迎。”陈海表示，并期待能够在缅甸举办东博会的相关专业展等活动，也愿意积极参与、推动，发挥应有的作用。

The year 2020 marks the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and Myanmar. Chinese President Xi Jinping paid a historic visit to Myanmar earlier this year， embarking on a new journey of bilateral relations. Later， China and Myanmar have confronted many challenges brought by the COVID-19. Against this background， how will China and Myanmar write a new chapter for bilateral relations？

On the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and Myanmar， Chinese Ambassador to Myanmar H.E. Chen Hai gave an interview with China-ASEAN Panorama Magazine Agency. In the beginning， Chen said， “What impressed me most recently was the remarks delivered by Chinese President Xi Jinping to CPPCC members at this years Two Sessions — ‘Cultivating new opportunities in the midst of the crisis and opening a new one in the midst of changes. This holds true for China-Myanmar relations and the building of a community of shared future.” Under this backdrop， China-Myanmar relations will bear promising prospects.

Jointly fight against the COVID-19 and further cement bilateral friendship

China and Myanmar have carried forward traditional Pauk-Phaw friendship and a fine tradition of sharing weal and woe for thousands of years. After the outbreak of the epidemic， China and Myanmar have been close partners in fighting against the COVID-19. We received substantial supports from the government， military and all walks of life of Myanmar when we faced the brunt of the epidemic. Particularly， Myanmars military applied military planes to deliver medical supplies to China when Myanmar was in the absence of medical supplies. In return， after the outbreak of the COVID-19 in Myanmar， China provided Myanmar with several batches of urgently needed anti-epidemic materials， nucleic acid testing devices and laboratories， dispatched three batches of medical experts to Myanmar， and trained a large number of medical workers， effectively improving Myanmars capacity of epidemic prevention and control.

“In the course of epidemic prevention， Myanmar was under tremendous pressure due to its limited capability. However， led by Myanmars State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi， Myanmar worked effectively and vigorously to control the epidemic， and reported only more than 200 confirmed cases. Such results were hard-won， especially for a country with a population of nearly 60 million and relatively weak medical equipment，” said Chen.

On May 28， the Union Minister for International Cooperation U Kyaw Tin had a phone call with Chen and expressed thanks again on behalf of the government of Myanmar for the assistance from China. “I believe the Myanmar government will show their appreciation with concrete actions， and amply demonstrate the brotherhood， partnership and neighborliness of the two sides， as well as the connotation of a community of shared future，” said Chen.

Chen indicated that mutual assistance and solidarity under the epidemic turned out to be a key to further consolidate the friendly relations between China and Myanmar. “By virtue of this opportunity， more efforts should be made to serve a broad cross-section of society in Myanmar. This year， China will complete building a moderately prosperous society in all respects. In this regard， China should bring along the development of Myanmar and jointly build a moderately prosperous society，” noted Chen.

CMEC to bring about a new situation

To complete the building of a moderately prosperous society in all respects as scheduled by 2020， the Chinese government will make a big push to ensure six priorities and the stability in six areas for steady economic momentum. Similarly， Myanmar also needs to confront such great challenges as ensuring security in job and basic living needs. Affected by the COVID-19， a large number of Burmese migrant workers returned home from the border provinces of Thailand and China. And many projects were suspended， putting great pressures on stabilizing economic growth. Besides， this year Myanmar will hold a general election to elect a new parliament and new leading bodies.

“Under such circumstances， Myanmar should not only promote economic development and peoples livelihood through its own efforts， but also rely on foreign trade and investment. Now， China has become an important partner in providing support to Myanmar，” said Chen.

During President Xis visit to Myanmar in early 2020， a number of important consensuses were reached， including the building of China-Myanmar community with a shared future. And the transition of the China-Myanmar Economic Corridor （CMEC） from conceptual planning to substantive construction was promoted. According to Chen， supported by China， the Chinese Embassy in Myanmar has experienced positive progress in impelling the construction of CMEC， particularly the three important projects under the framework of CMEC： China （Ruili）-Myanmar （Muse） Cross Border Economic Cooperation Zone， Kyaukpyu Deep-Water Port and Special Economic Zone， and New Yangon City Project.

Take China （Ruili）-Myanmar （Muse） Cross Border Economic Cooperation Zone as an example， its working groups have decided to carry out project docking in June， and strived to formulate plans for further border cooperation at an early date， with a view to laying a foundation for the launch of construction in the era of “post-COVID-19”. In addition， great strides have also been made in the planning and cooperation of Kyaukpyu Deep-Water Port and Special Economic Zone and New Yangon City Project.

“I believe the launch of these major projects will restore confidence in all sectors of society and inject impetus and vitality to employment and economic growth in Myanmar. On top of that， other projects including transport and power connectivity have also been pushed forward. It can see that although influenced by the epidemic， cooperation on CMEC has not been suspended but forged ahead with new opportunities，” said Chen.

Support each other and oppose external interference

“The world today is undergoing profound changes unseen in a century， and such changes further evolve in face of the epidemic，” said Chen. As injustice and inequality remain prominent in international relations， developing countries， including China and Myanmar， face new challenges in safeguarding their respective sovereignty， security and development interests.

As friendly neighbors since the establishment of diplomatic ties 70 years ago， China and Myanmar in the 1950s jointly initiated the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence that are still full of strong vitality in todays drastic changes. On issues concerning each others core interests and major concerns， China and Myanmar have been always supporting and understanding each other. During President Xis visit to Myanmar， he further reached consensus with Myanmars leader on jointly opposing foreign interference.

Lately， a small number of countries and some forces have been stirring up trouble over Hong Kong-related issues. On May 28， the Union Minister for International Cooperation U Kyaw Tin， on behalf of Myanmar， expressed supports for Chinas measures to enact a national security law on Hong Kong to safeguard national security， and clearly showed the support for the principle of “One Country， Two Systems，” and Hong Kongs prosperity and stability.

Meanwhile， the peace and development of Myanmar have been also subjected to the interference of some western forces. In line with Myanmars issues and concerns， China has played a constructive role in upholding justice for Myanmar on issues such as the Rakhine State.

“I think there are rooms where China and Myanmar can strengthen cooperation amid profound changes in the international and regional situation，” noted Chen.

Hoping CAEXPO can enter Myanmar

Chen has a special affection for and speaks highly of the CAEXPO since he once worked for the CAEXPO Secretariat and took part in the planning and organizing work of CAEXPO. “Over the past 16 years， CAEXPO has acted as a vital platform to promote China-ASEAN friendly exchanges， economic and trade exchanges and cooperation in various fields， as well as a bridge to enhance mutual political trust between China and ASEAN countries，” said Chen.

In the new era， the relationship between China and ASEAN and the role of the CAEXPO will be more notable. Chen indicated that he is not only looking forward to the fruitful results in the upcoming 17th CAEXPO， but also hoping the CAEXPO can enter Myanmar at an appropriate time.

“Myanmar as a member of ASEAN boasts second-mover advantages with a large population and abundant resources. Since the government of Myanmar attached great importance to the CAEXPO and the Ministry of Commerce of Myanmar incorporated the CAEXPO into the key exhibitions every year， the enthusiasm of the business community runs high， bringing favorable results and expanded scales of participation. Besides， Myanmars jewelry， jade， coffee tea， mango and other products are popular in China，” expressed Chen. He said that he is looking forward to holding CAEXPO-related professional exhibitions and other activities in Myanmar， and is willing to proactively participate in and promote the CAEXPO， so as to help exert the due role of CAEXPO.