Thailand, Myanmar plan talks as border bridge closure disrupts trade
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Htet Nadi (NP News) - August 24
The Nation reports that Thailand is planning to meet with Myanmar's economic envoy to discuss the goods blocked at the Thai-Myanmar border.
It is also known that on August 20, Myanmar Ambassador to Thailand U Zaw Zaw Soe and the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, H.E. Mrs. Eksiri Pintaruchi met at the Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs to discuss the bilateral border trade.
Myanmar's sudden closure of the Second Thai-Myanmar Friendship Bridge on August 18 has thrown cross-border trade into crisis according to its previous report.
Myanmar authorities claimed that it would divert border taxes to the central government. This has brought the vital trade route to a standstill, threatening trade worth 130 billion baht according to the reports.
The order is reportedly part of the Myanmar government’s policy of reclaiming revenue from border trade to the central government. For years, ethnic armed groups, including the Border Guard Force (BGF), have been collecting most of the revenue in the region. Now, the Myanmar government wants to regain control and increase revenue.
The main trade bridge, Bridge No. 2, is closed, but Bridge No. 1 remains open to traffic and small boats, according to the Thai media. However, the closure of Bridge No. 2, which carries a large number of goods, is causing great difficulties for exporters, transport companies and traders.
Therefore, businessmen fear that the situation will further delay the delivery of goods and those goods may be damaged. The entire border trade system may “come to a standstill,” they said.
The closure of these border gates will further disrupt illegal trade routes, which is expected to affect local businesses on both sides of the border.
However, as Myanmar authorities increase maritime trade with Thailand, the main victims of this trade blockade are the KNU and PDF, who rely on import and export trucks in the Myawaddy region to collect remittances. Their daily income of nearly 1.5 billion kyats has been cut off.
The sudden closure of this lucrative route, which used to generate over four billion kyats a month, could hamper the ability of these armed groups to wage a town-capture campaign as their main source of income for fighting is halted.