YANGON: Myanmar’s junta has warned a regional bloc working to defuse its political crisis that setting a timeframe for a peace plan could lead to “negative implications”. Myanmar has been in chaos since a coup in February last year, with more than 2,300 killed in the military’s brutal crackdown onContinue Reading
DIPLOMATIC BALANCE “What’s a life, in this kind of prison cell for almost 10 years?” asked Thai senator Zakee Phithakkumpol, one of the leaders of the Islamic Central Council, which represents the kingdom’s eight million Muslims. Support for the detainees has stepped up in recent months, with eight Thai humanContinue Reading
Moscow’s “special military operation” in Ukraine has ushered in a new geopolitical reality. The Kremlin and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) may become increasingly close, perhaps even to the point of resurrecting the quasi-alliance that existed during the Cold War. From the start of the Ukraine crisis, Pyongyang has unequivocally supported Moscow. The […]Continue Reading
TAIPEI: China should stop its sabre-rattling against Taiwan and maintain peace and stability, the head of Taiwan’s China-policy making Mainland Affairs Council said on Friday (Oct 28), as Beijing ramped up political and military pressure on the island it claimed as its own. China has stepped up military activities nearContinue Reading
Speculation regarding how secure Vladimir Putin’s position is surfaces every few years, but has intensified since the invasion of Ukraine, particularly in light of Russia’s military failures in recent months. Many of these speculative debates discuss either who will take the leadership position or what sort of regime – and led by who – will […]Continue Reading
“It was a shock to see municipalities which had never flooded getting hit this time,” Imam said, adding that some families were swept away when the waters hit their homes. The heavy rainfall began late Thursday in the impoverished region, which is under Muslim self-rule after decades of separatist armedContinue Reading
COTABATO, Philippines: Landslides and flooding killed 13 people as heavy rain from approaching Tropical Storm Nalgae lashed southern Philippines, with some residents stranded on rooftops, a disaster official said Friday (Oct 28). Torrents of rainwater unleashed flash floods laden with uprooted trees, rocks and mud overnight in mainly rural communitiesContinue Reading
US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan and President Joe Biden’s pledge that the United States would defend the island have escalated tensions in the Taiwan Strait. At the 20th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party, President Xi Jinping stressed the importance of reunifying with Taiwan. The escalating US-China technology rivalry and global chip shortage make Taiwan’s role as […]Continue Reading
There has been a second coup in Burkina Faso; the third in the Sahel this year. Mere months after Paul-Henri Damiba overthrew the country’s democratically elected president, he was himself overthrown last month, and for the same reason. The Islamist militias in the ungoverned spaces of the country continue to claim lives, and have displaced 2 million people within […]Continue Reading
North Korea has said that recent missile launches were in protest against the joint exercises, which it says are provocative and a rehearsal for an invasion. South Korea and the US say the exercises are defensive and needed to counter the North’s threats. The US and its allies believe NorthContinue Reading