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Myanmar

Latest news, updates and opinion on Myanmar, covering politics, economy, society and the country’s relationships with China and India, and other countries in Southeast Asia.

Capital

Naypyidaw

Head of State

Acting President Min Aung Hlaing

Head of Government

Prime Minister Min Aung Hlaing

Mental health

Letters | 5-year plan must take mental health seriously for the economy’s sake

Readers discuss why mental health ought to be positioned as a strategic asset, and how the city is well-placed to build health resilience for the world’s most impoverished.

4 hours ago

Asean

AI threatens nearly a quarter of Southeast Asia’s workforce but not all is lost

6 hours agovideocam

Myanmar steps up civilian attacks with drones and paragliders, UN says

12 Aug 2026 - 7:55PM

Hong Kong courts

Hong Kong’s IOMed ‘ready to tackle state disputes, serve as Asian legal hub’

IOMed head Teresa Cheng says six countries have nominated 26 mediators to handle such disputes, as Hong Kong seeks Asia legal capital role.

11 Aug 2026 - 12:27PM

The IOMed's headquarters is located at the former Old Wan Chai Police Station. Photo: Dickson Lee

China travel

China’s aviation regulator steps up safety communication with foreign carriers

The Civil Aviation Administration of China, following some operational changes, has increased its aircraft checks as an additional safety measure.

11 Aug 2026 - 8:30AMvideocam

Asean

Myanmar rebuffs Asean call to free Aung San Suu Kyi

Myanmar will continue to work with Asean’s special envoy but does not see the need to continue when Singapore takes over on January 1.

9 Aug 2026 - 8:26PMvideocam

Asean

Can war-torn Myanmar finally realise its economic potential?

Myanmar’s economy has shown signs of life after years of sky-high inflation and negative growth, but experts say it is far from recovering.

11 Aug 2026 - 5:10PMvideocam

A road in Yangon, Myanmar in March. Experts say Myanmar remains far from recovering its previous footing which began with political and economic reforms in 2011 – a period of growth abruptly ended by the coup. Photo: EPA

Thailand

Video | Myanmar’s president in first state visit to Thailand since coup

The junta-chief-turned-president pledged to improve ties with Asean despite the country’s leaders being barred from bloc’s summits since the 2021 coup.

7 Aug 2026 - 2:56PM

Thailand

Myanmar president heads to Thailand amid civil war at home

Thailand’s acknowledgement of Min Aung Hlaing’s legitimacy stems from a ‘straight up pragmatism’, analysts say.

7 Aug 2026 - 3:04PMvideocam

Aung San Suu Kyi

Video | Myanmar’s Suu Kyi meets Red Cross official

Newly released photographs are among the few images that show the democratic leader since she was detained by the military in 2021.

4 Aug 2026 - 2:12PM

01:06

Aung San Suu Kyi

‘She is alive’: new Suu Kyi photos emerge as Myanmar junta faces pressure

In photos released by the president’s office, Suu Kyi is seen shaking hands with Arnaud de Baecque and cutting a birthday cake.

4 Aug 2026 - 2:40PMvideocam

A Myanmar government handout photo shows ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi (left) talking to Arnaud de Baecque in Naypyitaw on Monday. Photo: Myanmar President Office/EPA

Malaysia

‘Incomprehensible’: Malaysia’s Rohingya return deal sparks refoulement fears

Rights groups warn returnees to Myanmar could face forced conscription, arbitrary detention, torture and forced labour.

30 Jul 2026 - 8:46PMvideocam

Asean

Justice beyond borders: East Timor’s Myanmar case tests Asean diplomacy

The case, which alleges abuses in Myanmar’s northwestern Chin state, is now under consideration by the courts in Dili.

31 Jul 2026 - 9:15AMvideocam

Asean

Asian scam gangs snare educated English speakers with fake job ads: UN agency

Victims from over 80 different countries are being trafficked into cross-border scams, the International Organisation for Migration says.

29 Jul 2026 - 12:30PMvideocam

People from China, Vietnam and Ethiopia, believed to have been trafficked and forced to work in scam centres, are detained in Myawaddy district in eastern Myanmar on February 26, 2025. Photo: AP

Malaysia

Malaysian police raid online scam centres in Johor, arrest 335 people

Those arrested include 309 Chinese nationals, 19 Indonesians and ⁠three Malaysians, with assets worth about US$245,000 also seized.

28 Jul 2026 - 9:00PM

An aerial view of the Forest City development in Johor Bahru, Malaysia, in December 2023. Photo: EPA-EFE

Crime

Myanmar approves death sentence in crackdown on scam centres

Junta-backed bill targets syndicate bosses with life in prison and capital punishment.

28 Jul 2026 - 2:12PMvideocam

Asean

Myanmar military escalates civilian killings under new command, monitor reports

A conflict monitor records more than a dozen ⁠mass killings in 2026, over 450 civilians ⁠dead.

27 Jul 2026 - 1:41PM

Thailand

Thailand monastery added to Unesco heritage list, boosting tourism hopes

The Phra Mahathat monastery, the site has served as a regional Buddhist centre since its founding in the 8th century, according to Unesco.

27 Jul 2026 - 2:17AM

Visitors walks inside Wat Phra Mahathat Woramahawihan, a 13th-century Buddhist temple in Nakhon Si Thammarat city, Thailand, on July 3. Photo: AP

Aung San Suu Kyi

‘Defanging’ Aung San: Myanmar’s generals wage war on memory

Removing statues of the country’s founding father appears aimed at stripping democratic legitimacy from his daughter, Aung San Suu Kyi.

26 Jul 2026 - 10:00AM

Bangladesh

Video | Rohingyas risk deadly voyages as trafficking surges

One in seven of the Rohingya people who headed to sea hoping to escape poor conditions of the world’s largest refugee camp in Bangladesh was reported missing or dead in 2025.

26 Jul 2026 - 9:00AM

Bangladesh

Video | 500 feared dead in Myanmar smuggler boat tragedy

The UN confirmed many passengers were Rohingya refugees fleeing camps in Bangladesh.

24 Jul 2026 - 9:48PM

02:31

Malaysia

Malaysia’s refugee registration halt risks ‘ultimate disaster’ for new arrivals

The asylum seekers would be ‘susceptible to enforcement raids’ and ‘extortion by both authorities and locals’, an activist says.

24 Jul 2026 - 5:12PM

A boat with Rohingya refugees attempts to enter Malaysia on the northeastern resort island of Langkawi in January last year. Photo: AP

Cambodia

Hun Manet vows to make Cambodia ‘not worth staying’ for scammers

Cambodia has come under significant international pressure over scam compounds, including from both the US and China.

24 Jul 2026 - 11:37AMvideocam

Laos

Myanmar and Laos plan downstream Mekong’s biggest dam yet

A joint study for a 2,790MW hydropower project is more political stunt than power plan, critics say.

22 Jul 2026 - 4:40PM

Indonesia

Indonesia’s AI ambitions test US-China balancing act

Analysts warn joining the new body could limit Indonesia’s access to US-made AI models and proprietary technology.

21 Jul 2026 - 6:41PMvideocam

Indonesian Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto (left), who represented the country at the 2026 World Artificial Intelligence Conference in Shanghai on Thursday, with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi. Photo: Xinhua

Cambodia

Asia-Pacific cyberscam victims lost up to US$114 billion last year: UN

The losses from online scams, mostly investment fraud, are at least triple that from 2023, reflecting a ‘dramatic scaling’, the report says.

21 Jul 2026 - 12:30PMvideocam

A Thai soldier walks near small booths lined with acoustic foam used to make scam calls inside a compound in Cambodia’s O’Smach border town on February 2. Photo: Reuters

Asean

Opinion | Southeast Asia must write its own trade rules for China’s ‘flying geese’

As Chinese manufacturers migrate south, Asean has the leverage to dictate terms on local sourcing and skills training.

18 Jul 2026 - 12:00PM

Rohingya Muslims

Rohingya refugees among over 500 feared dead after Myanmar boats capsize

The UN said the incidents highlighted the plight of Rohingya, calling for enhanced rescue and anti-trafficking efforts.

25 Jul 2026 - 6:36AMvideocam

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Myanmar

.css-1pcrwvc{color:#2aa191;}Letters | 5-year plan must take mental health seriously for the economy’s sake

Readers discuss why mental health ought to be positioned as a strategic asset, and how the city is well-placed to build health resilience for the world’s most impoverished.

AI threatens nearly a quarter of Southeast Asia’s workforce but not all is lost

Myanmar steps up civilian attacks with drones and paragliders, UN says

Hong Kong’s IOMed ‘ready to tackle state disputes, serve as Asian legal hub’

IOMed head Teresa Cheng says six countries have nominated 26 mediators to handle such disputes, as Hong Kong seeks Asia legal capital role.

China’s aviation regulator steps up safety communication with foreign carriers

The Civil Aviation Administration of China, following some operational changes, has increased its aircraft checks as an additional safety measure.

Myanmar rebuffs Asean call to free Aung San Suu Kyi

Myanmar will continue to work with Asean’s special envoy but does not see the need to continue when Singapore takes over on January 1.

Can war-torn Myanmar finally realise its economic potential?

Myanmar’s economy has shown signs of life after years of sky-high inflation and negative growth, but experts say it is far from recovering.

.css-1f6sr3w{color:#727272;}Video | Myanmar’s president in first state visit to Thailand since coup

The junta-chief-turned-president pledged to improve ties with Asean despite the country’s leaders being barred from bloc’s summits since the 2021 coup.

Myanmar president heads to Thailand amid civil war at home

Thailand’s acknowledgement of Min Aung Hlaing’s legitimacy stems from a ‘straight up pragmatism’, analysts say.

Video | Myanmar’s Suu Kyi meets Red Cross official

Newly released photographs are among the few images that show the democratic leader since she was detained by the military in 2021.

‘She is alive’: new Suu Kyi photos emerge as Myanmar junta faces pressure

In photos released by the president’s office, Suu Kyi is seen shaking hands with Arnaud de Baecque and cutting a birthday cake.

‘Incomprehensible’: Malaysia’s Rohingya return deal sparks refoulement fears

Rights groups warn returnees to Myanmar could face forced conscription, arbitrary detention, torture and forced labour.

Justice beyond borders: East Timor’s Myanmar case tests Asean diplomacy

The case, which alleges abuses in Myanmar’s northwestern Chin state, is now under consideration by the courts in Dili.

Asian scam gangs snare educated English speakers with fake job ads: UN agency

Victims from over 80 different countries are being trafficked into cross-border scams, the International Organisation for Migration says.

Malaysian police raid online scam centres in Johor, arrest 335 people

Those arrested include 309 Chinese nationals, 19 Indonesians and ⁠three Malaysians, with assets worth about US$245,000 also seized.

Myanmar approves death sentence in crackdown on scam centres

Junta-backed bill targets syndicate bosses with life in prison and capital punishment.

Myanmar military escalates civilian killings under new command, monitor reports

A conflict monitor records more than a dozen ⁠mass killings in 2026, over 450 civilians ⁠dead.

Thailand monastery added to Unesco heritage list, boosting tourism hopes

The Phra Mahathat monastery, the site has served as a regional Buddhist centre since its founding in the 8th century, according to Unesco.

‘Defanging’ Aung San: Myanmar’s generals wage war on memory

Removing statues of the country’s founding father appears aimed at stripping democratic legitimacy from his daughter, Aung San Suu Kyi.

Video | Rohingyas risk deadly voyages as trafficking surges

One in seven of the Rohingya people who headed to sea hoping to escape poor conditions of the world’s largest refugee camp in Bangladesh was reported missing or dead in 2025.

Video | 500 feared dead in Myanmar smuggler boat tragedy

The UN confirmed many passengers were Rohingya refugees fleeing camps in Bangladesh.

Malaysia’s refugee registration halt risks ‘ultimate disaster’ for new arrivals

The asylum seekers would be ‘susceptible to enforcement raids’ and ‘extortion by both authorities and locals’, an activist says.

Hun Manet vows to make Cambodia ‘not worth staying’ for scammers

Cambodia has come under significant international pressure over scam compounds, including from both the US and China.

Myanmar and Laos plan downstream Mekong’s biggest dam yet

A joint study for a 2,790MW hydropower project is more political stunt than power plan, critics say.

Indonesia’s AI ambitions test US-China balancing act

Analysts warn joining the new body could limit Indonesia’s access to US-made AI models and proprietary technology.

Asia-Pacific cyberscam victims lost up to US$114 billion last year: UN

The losses from online scams, mostly investment fraud, are at least triple that from 2023, reflecting a ‘dramatic scaling’, the report says.

Opinion | Southeast Asia must write its own trade rules for China’s ‘flying geese’

As Chinese manufacturers migrate south, Asean has the leverage to dictate terms on local sourcing and skills training.

Rohingya refugees among over 500 feared dead after Myanmar boats capsize

The UN said the incidents highlighted the plight of Rohingya, calling for enhanced rescue and anti-trafficking efforts.

Letters | 5-year plan must take mental health seriously for the economy’s sake

Video | Myanmar’s president in first state visit to Thailand since coup