The KIA’s response to the Chinese closure of border trade gates in Kachin State is encouraging. The Chinese side reopened two gates they wanted to open and tried to import rare earth minerals, but the KIA closed the border gates again. If China wants to open them, they need to reopen all the gates, otherwise the KIA will close all the gates again, a Kachin State source said.
While the border gates have been closed for almost a month, other areas are facing difficulties on the Myanmar side, but the Kachin-China border is facing some problems on the Chinese side. The main problem is rare earth minerals. China imports a lot of rare earth minerals from Kachin State, and the closure of the border gates has caused a shortage of rare earth minerals and increased prices. So China wants to secretly reopen the border gates. The rare earth mines that the Chinese desperately want are now under the control of the KIA. These industries were previously controlled by Kachin militias under the military council and generated billions of dollars in revenue. When China’s pressure came on the big EAOs on the border, the KIA quickly seized these areas to counter China. Now, the KIA can respond to China with a strong response. The other EAOs on the border should follow suit.
