When fighting in Myanmar’s civil war escalated last fall, Chinese-origin weapons could be found on both sides. The military junta’s air force includes Chinese-supplied jets, while the anti-regime Three Brotherhood Alliance employs Chinese-manufactured small arms purchased from another China-backed group along the border. Is China backing both sides simultaneously? And if so, why? Beijing’s cooperation with multiple opposing actors in Myanmar is nothing new. China’s policy in Myanmar is a “hedging strategy” wherein authorities in Beijing and Yunnan Province foster ties and leverage with actors throughout Myanmar’s complex political environment. By simultaneously backing ethnic armed groups along the Chinese border,
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