The impact on a flagship Chinese oil and gas pipeline is under close watch after a powerful earthquake hit Myanmar on Friday afternoon, with tremors felt in neighbouring China and Thailand.
Strong tremors were felt in China’s southwestern province of Yunnan, but no casualties have been reported so far, according to state news agency Xinhua.
Other Chinese media outlets reported that many in Yunnan felt the quake, with some injuries and damage to houses. Rescue operations are reportedly under way.
Videos posted on Chinese social media showed buildings shaking in Kunming, the capital of Yunnan.
Associated Press reported that there were no immediate estimates of injuries or deaths from Myanmar, which is embroiled in a civil war.
Myanmar is a key member of Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative, a global investment and infrastructure project initiated in 2013, because of the country’s geographical position as a corridor between China and Southeast and South Asia.
Energy-rich Myanmar also serves as a strategic overland route for China’s oil and gas imports from the Middle East, reducing reliance on sea routes dominated by the US and shortening transport time.
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