Myanmar

by Steve Suwannarat | THAILAND – MALAYSIA

Yesterday the former Thai prime minister made his first official outing as coordinator of a group of informal advisers to the head of the Malaysian government who is this year’s ASEAN rotating chairman. The former foreign minister of Singapore was also present. The Thai billionaire's knowledge of Myanmar’s situation and his business acumen underlie his role, but there is no shortage of critical voices.


In recent weeks, clashes between Myanmar’s military and ethnic militias have intensified on the Thai border. Faced with renewed violence, Thailand has proposed a series of "informal" meetings to reboot the peace process. But representatives of the armed groups have not been invited, and the agenda is unclear. Divisions also remain within ASEAN over Myanmar’s junta.

 

| 18/12/2024
| THAILAND – MYANMAR

After six months, the township of Maungdaw has fallen to the AA, while fighting continues in the south of the state. The ethnic Buddhist militia seems set to establish its own state and many fear that it might take revenge against Rohingya after some were drafted, often forcibly, to fight alongside Myanmar’s regular army.

| 10/12/2024
| MYANMAR

ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan issued the request based only on the violence against the Rohingya in 2016 and 2017 with no reference to the 2021 coup that plunged Myanmar into civil war. The last three years have changed the relationship between the putschist military and ethnic minorities, complicating the situation on the ground.

| 27/11/2024
| MYANMAR

Pneg Deren was detained after he travelled to Yunnan for talks with Chinese officials, local media report. Despite pressure from Beijing, his armed group, the MNDAA, maintains control of Lashio, a city in Shan State. Meanwhile, junta planes bomb the area, killing at least 12, including eight children. A Baptist church was also struck.

| 20/11/2024
| MYANMAR

Msgr Celso Ba Shwe - Bishop of Loikaw - took part in the celebration that every year on the third Sunday of November recalls the bond of solidarity between Japanese Catholics and the Church in former Burma, now wounded by war. Support for schools in the forest through the Seeds of Hope initiative. Archbishop Kikuchi: ‘Hope is born from the heart of those who walk together’.

| 19/11/2024
| JAPAN - MYANMAR

Myanmar’s military strongman met with Chinese Premier Li Qiang during a two-day summit of the Greater Mekong Subregion. Chinese source stresses infrastructure projects undermined by the civil war, noting that Beijing has also held discussions with the militias that control the borders and the rare earth trade.

| 07/11/2024
| MYANMAR – CHINA
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