{"id":5955,"date":"2025-05-03T23:27:27","date_gmt":"2025-05-03T16:57:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/?p=5955"},"modified":"2025-05-03T23:27:27","modified_gmt":"2025-05-03T16:57:27","slug":"global-power-struggles-and-the-face-of-modern-colonialism","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/2025\/05\/global-power-struggles-and-the-face-of-modern-colonialism\/","title":{"rendered":"Global Power Struggles and the Face of Modern Colonialism"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/image-3.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-5956\" src=\"https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/image-3-1024x535.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"752\" height=\"393\" srcset=\"https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/image-3-1024x535.png 1024w, https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/image-3-300x157.png 300w, https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/image-3-768x401.png 768w, https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/image-3-560x292.png 560w, https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/image-3-260x136.png 260w, https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/image-3-160x84.png 160w, https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/image-3.png 1092w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 752px) 100vw, 752px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>&#8220;Myanmar Spring Chronicle \u2013 May 2 Overview&#8221;<\/strong>,<\/p>\n<p>published by <em>MoeMaKa on May 3, 2025<\/em>*:<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3><strong>Global Power Struggles and the Face of Modern Colonialism<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>On <strong>April 28 and 29<\/strong>, the <strong>Ta\u2019ang National Liberation Army (TNLA)<\/strong> and Myanmar\u2019s <strong>military junta<\/strong> held talks in <strong>Kunming, China<\/strong>, under <strong>Chinese mediation<\/strong>. TNLA, one of the three members of the <strong>Northern Brotherhood Alliance<\/strong>, reportedly attended the negotiations <strong>not by choice, but under pressure<\/strong> from Beijing.<\/p>\n<p>China, a neighboring power with strong influence over both the Myanmar junta and ethnic armed groups along its border, continues to act as a dominant force in the region. The junta also heavily relies on China for <strong>trade, weapons<\/strong>, and <strong>diplomatic shielding<\/strong> on the international stage.<\/p>\n<p>Just before these talks, <strong>MNDAA (Kokang Army)<\/strong>\u2014a key actor in Operation 1027\u2014<strong>returned control of Lashio<\/strong> to the junta through a negotiated settlement, marking a <strong>significant shift<\/strong> in the objectives of that campaign. Now TNLA, too, finds itself in dialogue with the junta\u2014again, <strong>due to Chinese pressure<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3><strong>Where the Talks Stand<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>TNLA has announced that <strong>no agreements<\/strong> were reached in this initial round.<\/p>\n<p>The junta reportedly demanded that <strong>TNLA withdraw from a broad stretch of territory<\/strong>\u2014from <strong>Naungcho, Kyaukme, Hsipaw, Mogok<\/strong>, all the way to <strong>Namhsan and Mantong<\/strong>. TNLA rejected this demand. Both sides agreed to <strong>meet again in August<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>According to TNLA, Chinese special envoy <strong>Deng Xijun<\/strong> facilitated the meetings and proposed a <strong>full ceasefire<\/strong>, including:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\n<p>Halting <strong>airstrikes<\/strong>, <strong>heavy shelling<\/strong>, and <strong>drone attacks<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>Reopening <strong>China-Myanmar trade routes<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>Establishing broader <strong>stability<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>Replicating the <strong>MNDAA-style ceasefire<\/strong> framework<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr \/>\n<h3><strong>China\u2019s True Intentions<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>China\u2019s primary concern is <strong>protecting its trade routes and investments<\/strong> in Myanmar. This drives its push for ceasefires\u2014not humanitarian reasons. To ensure this, Beijing seems to prefer working with <strong>the junta<\/strong>\u2014the actor it deems most capable of <strong>guaranteeing compliance<\/strong>\u2014while viewing the Northern Brotherhood as <strong>negotiable but secondary<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>What\u2019s unfolding is part of a <strong>wider geopolitical trend<\/strong>. Across Asia, Africa, and Latin America, China is deepening its <strong>economic and political footprint<\/strong>. Developing nations are increasingly subject to <strong>Chinese influence<\/strong> via <strong>infrastructure investments, loans, and resource extraction deals<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>While many developing countries\u2014including Myanmar\u2014traditionally referred to <strong>Western powers<\/strong> as modern colonialists, <strong>China\u2019s growing economic entrenchment<\/strong> now draws similar criticism.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3><strong>The U.S. Retreats Into Self-Interest<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Under President <strong>Donald Trump<\/strong>, U.S. foreign policy is overtly <strong>transactional and interest-driven<\/strong>. Human rights, democracy, and freedom of expression\u2014once loudly championed\u2014are now taking a backseat.<\/p>\n<p>In Trump\u2019s own words, the U.S. won\u2019t aid Ukraine militarily <strong>unless Ukraine agrees to business deals<\/strong>\u2014including <strong>mineral extraction contracts<\/strong> and <strong>energy development licenses<\/strong>. After this statement, reports emerged that <strong>Ukrainian President Zelenskyy agreed<\/strong> to certain terms.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3><strong>What This Means for Myanmar<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>The <strong>Spring Revolution in Myanmar<\/strong>, like Ukraine\u2019s war for survival, now finds itself in a global landscape where <strong>great powers put their interests first<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>China backs the junta <strong>for stability and economic access<\/strong>. The U.S., under Trump, is <strong>retreating from its traditional pro-democracy role<\/strong>, offering support only if there&#8217;s a <strong>profit to be made<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>As a result:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\n<p>Myanmar&#8217;s revolutionary hopes are <strong>undermined by China&#8217;s pressure<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>The U.S. increasingly <strong>ignores Myanmar\u2019s struggle<\/strong>, focusing instead on financial gains elsewhere<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>In this era of modern colonialism\u2014driven by trade, minerals, and geopolitical competition\u2014<strong>neither side<\/strong> is backing the people\u2019s aspirations in Myanmar. The Spring Revolution continues, <strong>but international support is growing colder and more conditional<\/strong>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;Myanmar Spring Chronicle \u2013 May 2 Overview&#8221;, published by MoeMaKa on May 3, 2025*: Global Power Struggles and the Face of Modern Colonialism On April 28 and 29, the Ta\u2019ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) and Myanmar\u2019s military junta held talks&hellip;<\/p>\n<p class=\"more-link-p\"><a class=\"more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/2025\/05\/global-power-struggles-and-the-face-of-modern-colonialism\/\">Read more &rarr;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5956,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[9,58],"tags":[100],"class_list":["post-5955","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-current","category-features","tag-myanmar-spring-revolution"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/image-3.png","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p3RDLm-1y3","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5955","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5955"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5955\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5957,"href":"https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5955\/revisions\/5957"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5956"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5955"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5955"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5955"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}