China supports Myanmar junta plan for fresh elections: FM

CHIANG MAI, Thailand: China supports a plan by Myanmar´s junta to hold fresh elections and return the conflict-torn country to a “democratic transition”, Beijing´s foreign minister said on Friday.

The Southeast Asian country has been in turmoil since the military deposed the government of Aung San Suu Kyi and seized power in 2021.

The coup upended a ten-year experiment with democracy and a subsequent military crackdown has sparked fighting with established ethnic minority armed groups and newer pro-democracy “People´s Defence Forces.”

China is a major ally and arms supplier to the junta, but analysts say it also maintains ties with ethnic groups fighting the military in Myanmar´s northern Shan state.