Security concerns delay Mandalay to Kyaukphyu railway project, junta says

By Admin 02 Jul 2026

DMG Newsroom

2 July 2026, Nay Pyi Taw

The Myanmar military junta says work on the proposed Mandalay to Kyaukphyu railway, part of China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), has been temporarily suspended in some areas because of security concerns.

Junta spokesperson Dr. Khaing Khaing Soe made the remarks during the regime's first press conference held in Nay Pyi Taw on June 30.

"Although the preliminary route for the Mandalay to Kyaukphyu railway has been selected, project activities in some areas have been temporarily suspended during the survey stage because security cannot be guaranteed due to the ongoing conflict," she said. "Operations will resume as quickly as possible once the security situation improves."

She said route surveys for the Muse to Mandalay railway project have been completed and the project is ready to move into the implementation stage.

She continued that the necessary agreements are being finalized to accelerate implementation of the Kaladan Multi Modal Transit Transport Project, which is being developed in cooperation with India.

However, she said peace and stability remain the key requirement for implementing major infrastructure projects, adding that work will resume once security conditions in the affected areas improve.

Self-appointed President Min Aung Hlaing visited India and China last month and pledged to move forward with the projects during meetings with leaders of both countries.

"Chinese and Indian projects are concentrated in Arakan State. Regardless of how much the military government wants to implement them, the Arakan Army is the de facto authority in much of Arakan State. Without engaging both sides, these projects cannot move forward," an observer of foreign investment in Arakan State told DMG.

The observer added that Arakan State remains strategically important to both the military junta and the Arakan Army in terms of international standing and military influence.

The Institute for Strategy and Policy Myanmar (ISP-Myanmar) has assessed that discussions on protecting Chinese and Indian investment projects during Min Aung Hlaing's visits could lead to intensified military operations across multiple battlefronts in Myanmar.

The junta is currently working with China on the Kyaukphyu Deep Sea Port and Muse to Mandalay railway projects, while also seeking to accelerate implementation of the Kaladan Multi Modal Transit Transport Project and the India Myanmar Thailand Trilateral Highway project in cooperation with India.

The junta spokesperson said the major infrastructure projects being implemented with China and India will resume as soon as security conditions improve.