By Yew Lun Tian
BEIJING (Reuters) – Myanmar’s ambassador to China died on Sunday, according to diplomatic sources, the fourth ambassador to die in China in the past year.
Ambassador U Myo Thant Pe was last seen on Saturday meeting a local official in the southwestern Chinese province of Yunnan which borders Myanmar, according to a local news report.
Three diplomats briefed about his passing told Reuters he died on Sunday while travelling in Yunnan. Diplomats and one report in Myanmar media said the cause of death is likely to be a heart attack.
The Myanmar embassy did not immediately respond to a query for comment.
U Myo Thant Pe was apppointed ambassador to China in late 2019 and stayed in his post after Myanmar’s military took power in a coup in February 2021.
Three other top foreign envoys to China have died in the past year.
German ambassador Jan Hecker, 54, died in September, less than two weeks into his Beijing posting. Ukraine ambassador Serhiy Kamyshev, 65, died in February during or shortly after a visit to a Beijing Winter Olympics venue.
Philippines ambassador Jose Santiago “Chito” Sta. Romana, 74, died in quarantine in the eastern Chinese province of Anhui in April.
(Reporting by Yew Lun Tian; Editing by Lincoln Feast)
