Burma?s generals have a history of juggling relations with Washington and Beijing... "If ever the Burmese regime made it clear it preferred ?Made in America? to ?Made in China,? it would be no surprise to see relations between China and Burma suffer a severe hiccup. China is now keenly observing Washington?s new policy toward the Burmese regime and Burma?s opposition movement. At the same time, Beijing is observing the unpredictable Naypyidaw regime?s paukphaw (kinship) commitment to China. Burma?s former dictator, Ne Win, (left) met then US President Lyndon Johnson in 1966. Burmese military officers used Western weapons to counter Chinese-backed insurgents in the past. They have long memories of Chinese chauvinism and Beijing?s efforts to export communism to Burma and install a government sympathetic to Mao Zedong?s communist ideology. Those days are long gone. China became Burma?s staunchest ally after the regime brutally crushed the pro-democracy uprising in 1988. For the past 21 years, China has adopted its paukphaw policy toward Burma and played an influential role there..."