Yangon: Burmese generals invited to Asean defense meetings

Today's headlines: Japan promises investment in India, while Delhi has approved another line of credit to Colombo; Russia has collected data on citizens who have left the country; Syrian President Bashar al-Assad visited the Emirates; in Indonesia, toy car races are back in fashion.

MYANMAR

The sale of telecommunications subsidiary Telenor to Lebanese group M1 has been approved. Activists warn that in this way customer data could end up in the hands of the leaders of the military junta. In the meantime, in the last week Burmese generals took part in several meetings of the intelligence and defense forces of Asean, whose presidency is in the hands of Cambodia.

INDONESIA

Miniature car racing is back in vogue, thanks to the pandemic Playing Mini 4WD had become popular in the early 1990s, after Japanese manufacturer Tamiya introduced the new hobby to Indonesia as well. It is mainly millennials, who played it as children, who revived the business during the lockdown.

INDIA - JAPAN

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will announce a billion (5 trillion yen) investment plan in India over five years, writes the Nikkei. Japan in India is supporting urban infrastructure development. The visit is the first leg of a three-day tour that will also take Kishida to Cambodia to forge stronger relations with Asean as well.

SRI LANKA - INDIA

Sri Lanka has secured a billion line of credit from India to buy food and medicine. The Indian loan comes on top of another 0 million line of credit that Delhi had granted to allow Colombo to continue importing oil.

RUSSIA

The personal data of 600 Russian citizens who left Russia after the invasion of Ukraine began were made public on the website of the "Committee for the Defense of National Interests," and other sites began releasing similar data soon after Putin's intervention against "traitors to the nation" and "fifth columns."

GEORGIA

In Georgia, controversy is intensifying over support for Ukraine, which oppositions consider insufficient, especially after the statement by the president of the ruling "Georgian Dream" party Iraklij Kobakhidze about the country's refusal to participate in anti-Russian sanctions. Imprisoned ex-president Mikhail Saakašvili has invited President Salome Zurabišvili to travel to Ukraine, and the latter complains of government opposition to his meetings with international leaders, which are deemed "unconstitutional abuses."

CHINA

China had reported only two deaths from Covid-19 in 2021. Today it reported two more in the northeastern region of Jilin, the epicenter of a new infection outbreak. The death toll would thus have risen to 4,638. Yesterday, China reported 2,228 new cases.

SYRIA - UAE

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has flown to the United Arab Emirates in what is the first visit to an Arab country since the war began in 2011. Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed expressed hope that "this visit will be the beginning of peace and stability for Syria and the entire region."

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