China presses Myanmar to crack down on cross-border cyberscams targeting Chinese

Foreign Minister Qin Gang urges Myanmar to tackle the fraud schemes he says Chinese people are ‘deeply resentful’ about
China has repeatedly told Myanmar to hunt down crime syndicates through joint law enforcement operations

China-Asean relations

Sylvie Zhuangin Beijing

Published: 4:47pm, 4 May 2023

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Foreign Minister Qin Gang has urged Myanmar to take “effective measures” to crack down on cross-border telecoms fraud targeting Chinese nationals, and called for joint law enforcement to tackle the scams.

Qin made the remarks during a two-day visit to Myanmar’s capital Naypyidaw and the neighbouring southwestern Chinese province of Yunnan.

“Telecoms fraud has long been entrenched in the border areas of Myanmar, causing significant harm to the interests of Chinese nationals, and the Chinese public is deeply resentful of these crimes,” Qin said, according to a Chinese foreign ministry readout released on Wednesday.

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“The Chinese government places great importance on this issue and is determined to take stringent action to crack down [on these cross-border crimes],” Qin said.

In high-level talks, China has repeatedly pressed Myanmar to take action against telecoms and online fraud, which often targets Chinese nationals.

In a meeting with Myanmar’s Home Affairs Minister Soe Htut in March, China’s top envoy to Myanmar, Chen Hai, urged the country to do more to rein in the groups behind the scams.

That meeting came soon after another case that was widely publicised on Weibo, China’s version of Twitter.

The incident in March involved four students from Anhui province who were drawn to Myanmar by the promise of high-paying jobs. Three of them had crossed the border illegally from Yunnan province and then lost contact with their families.

Almost two weeks later, the four were located by police and returned to China, according to reports from Chinese media outlets.

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Chinese media have broadcast many reports of well-organised gangs operating in Myanmar that have lured Chinese across the border illegally, and police in several Chinese cities have urged citizens to be vigilant.

Qin said China had urged Myanmar to take effective measures, coordinate with various departments to continue promoting China-Myanmar-Thailand joint law enforcement against such crimes, and rescue trapped Chinese nationals, according to the readout.

In response, Myanmar said it was willing to improve cooperation with China’s security departments to crack down on online fraud and other crimes in border areas.

China’s Ministry of Public Security hosted trilateral meetings with law enforcement officials from Myanmar and Thailand on March 20, during which the fraud cases and measures to combat cross-border crimes were discussed, according to Chinese media reports.

Last week, the ministry said Chinese law enforcement officers had completed their 128th joint patrol in the Greater Mekong area.