U Thaung Tun, the newly installed chair of the Myanmar Investment Commission (MIC) has said that a decision is expected “soon” on a major development at Kyaukphyu, in southern Rakhine State, while also dismissing concerns that the project is a “debt trap” for the government. “We would like to see this project get off the ground,” Thaung Tun told an international newspaper. “I would say we [China and Myanmar] are negotiating, the process is moving ahead and a decision is imminent.” The comments came amid reports that Myanmar was reviewing the billion-dollar project as part of plans to lower its cost. The project includes a planned Special Economic Zone (SEZ) and deep-sea port, that would give China access to the Indian Ocean. Thaung Tun said that China’s ambitious expansion plans would benefit its neighbours, and that the Kyaukphyu project was a “win win” for both countries. Critics of the Kyaukphyu projects have highlighted similarities with the Hambantota port in Sri Lanka, which last year was granted to a Chinese company as part of a 99-year lease to cut government debt. “We already know what happened to other places, and we will make sure [Kyaukphyu] is a workable project,” Thaung Tun said.