OPINION

Gunboat diplomacy?

The situation in Myanmar would seem to present a golden opportunity for a useful bit of gunboat diplomacy. What would be the likely result of an American carrier task force standing off the coast in the Gulf of Martaban or Indian Ocean? Perhaps joined by the new British aircraft carrier and French naval assets. Of course it is out of the question for a foreign invasion on the ground. However the Myanmar military might have cause to think again if faced with the threat of having its assets and installations reduced by air power. Including its small air force and command and control capability.

No doubt all this will seem like fantasy to geopolitical realists, but what is the likely alternative? As things stand, the anti-dictatorship population are most likely to lose the physical battle with their own military forces, accompanied by horrible loss of life. A general strike will be effective up to a point, but will probably end up with eventual resumption of work at gunpoint, encouraged by jailings and killings.

As things are now the likely winner will be China. Myanmar will be forced to accept total Chinese patronage, given comprehensive Western sanctions and a total arms embargo. The big losers will be the people of Myanmar, with an intensified military dictatorship, plus de facto control of their country by China. The secondary losers will be the US, India, Japan, and regional countries, who will see an even more emboldened China which will more easily be able to bypass the Straits of Malacca for its exports. Not only that, increased influence may see ports on the Andaman Sea and Indian Ocean eventually become Chinese naval bases.

A timely move now by the Western powers would gain almost total support from the Myanmar people, and if successful bring the country firmly into the Indo/Pacific sphere of influence.

Re: "They're both crimes", (BP, March 1).

James Debentures is gravely wrong to suggest that Ratsadorn's street activism and speaking out of truth is like robbing a bank. A more accurate comparison of the Ratsadorn leaders with the PDRC leaders is that of the street activist Jesus or the street philosopher Socrates with the likes of dictators who plot and commit a coup against their nation, their people, their nation's form of government and their nation's institutions.

Whilst it is true that bad people using bad law executed both Socrates and Jesus, those legal punishments for the "crimes" of speaking truth and standing up for justice on the streets, although rightly embarrassing the corrupt status quo of the political elite of ancient Judea and ancient Athens, were in no way deserved. In contrast, those true criminals most rotten who plot and commit coups, too often go free to meet and congratulate each other after perverting the law to amnesty themselves.

Jack Gilead's March 1 letter, "Waste of money", makes good sense but like all his others, he's preaching to the converted! Those in charge won't be reading it, assuming they can read English!

In Chiang Mai, we have a similar situation with a new intersection. Four roads cross there, but no traffic lights or police. The police have gone missing! If a member of royalty arrives, suddenly hundreds of of police on both sides of the road watch the motorcade. Once over, they again become invisible except for the occasional glimpse of one sitting in a gold shop!