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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

Filipino nurses, many of whom were bound for work abroad as carers, take an oath in Manila in 2009. Filipino carers have become an expensive “gold standard”, according to a recent white paper. Photo: AFP

Malaysia

Who will look after ageing Asia when its carers grow old?

Asia’s care economy is booming, but its biggest supplier nations are ageing too, raising fears of a coming carer shortfall.

13 Sep 2026 - 8:00AM

Asean

Up in smoke: why Southeast Asia failed to halt the haze

12 Sep 2026 - 9:57PMvideocam

Singapore

As Singapore weighs joining China-led AI body, does it risk US retaliation?

11 Sep 2026 - 9:53PM

US-China relations

US sanctions Chinese-language Xinbi Guarantee marketplace over cyber scams

Washington also seizes Telegram channels and US$52 million in cryptocurrency linked to the platform’s alleged illicit operations.

10 Sep 2026 - 10:30AMvideocam

US Attorney Jeanine Pirro announces enforcement actions against the Chinese-language marketplace Xinbi Guarantee in Washington on Wednesday. Photo: Getty Images via AFP

Thailand

12 South Koreans arrested in Thailand scam centre crackdown

Police say the alleged scammers entered Thailand from a neighbouring country and rented a luxury house south of Bangkok.

8 Sep 2026 - 8:46PMvideocam

United States

‘Can’t live without fighting’: Myanmar youth find solace in bareknuckle lethwei

Amid five years of devastating conflict, young fighters embrace the traditional bloodsport as both self-defence and refuge.

5 Sep 2026 - 3:08PM

Cambodia

Southeast Asia’s scam gangs regroup after Cambodia’s crackdown

Dislodged from Cambodian compounds, cyberscam cartels have been setting up shop in Laos, Myanmar and even Malaysia.

2 Sep 2026 - 2:19PMvideocam

Thai soldiers inspect a workstation at a suspected scam compound near the Chong Chom-O’Smach border crossing with Cambodia in December. Photo: Reuters

US-China relations

US Congress seeks to identify foreign countries behind scam calls

Inquiry comes as US government reports tying much of the financial damage from scams to Chinese criminal networks based in Southeast Asia.

2 Sep 2026 - 6:35AMvideocam

Singapore

Small state, big agenda: Singapore prepares to steer Asean through crisis

The city state takes the helm on Asean’s 60th anniversary amid civil war, tariff threats and rising global tensions.

31 Aug 2026 - 8:00AM

India

India rescues 2 Chinese nationals from sunken cargo ship, searches for others

The Panama-flagged vessel had ‌24 crew on board, including 20 Chinese nationals, according to India’s coastguard.

23 Aug 2026 - 3:03PM

An India coastguard boat. On Saturday, the coastguard launched a rescue mission after a Panama‑flagged cargo ship sank off India’s east coast. Photo: Reuters

War and conflict

Myanmar air strike kills 14 praying at monastery, rebel witnesses say

Public buildings, most often monasteries and schools, are frequently the sites of reported air strikes according to a UN report from last week.

22 Aug 2026 - 6:48PM

Debris litters a Buddhist monastery after an airstrike hit Swel Le Oh village in Myaung Township, Sagaing Region, Myanmar, on Friday. Photo: AP

Starlink

Asian Angle | SpaceX’s Starlink blackout punishes Myanmar civilians, not just cybercriminals

An estimated 13 million people – nearly a quarter of Myanmar’s population – rely on Starlink for internet access.

22 Aug 2026 - 12:00PM

US-China relations

Exclusive | Waico vs Pax Silica: Southeast Asia caught between China and US in AI race

Beijing reportedly offers exclusive perks to attract Global South partners while describing the American-led body as exclusionary.

22 Aug 2026 - 12:08AMvideocam

Scams and swindles

Asia faces scam ‘epidemic’ threat as gangs exploit agentic AI, analyst warns

The technology could allow scam syndicates to carry out multiple tasks to cheat victims at the same time without needing human intervention.

21 Aug 2026 - 3:12PMvideocam

Losses from transnational online scams in Asia-Pacific surged to US$114 billion last year. Photo; Shutterstock

US-China relations

US designates academic Min Zin as ‘wrongfully detained’ in China

Case adds friction weeks before Trump-Xi summit, with Washington pressing Beijing over Americans held in the country.

21 Aug 2026 - 6:53AMvideocam

Min Zin founded the Institute for Strategy and Policy – Myanmar in 2016 and has written extensively about the country’s politics and economy. Photo: LinkedIn

US-China trade war

Editorial | ‘Transshipment scam’ is not a global conspiracy but a warning to the US

The White House’s accusation that over 40 nations are involved in a shadow network that harms the US betrays a misunderstanding of how trade works.

20 Aug 2026 - 7:15AM

Thailand

Fake residency of foreign children in Thailand spotlights widening corruption

Seven people were arrested after nearly 200 children from Myanmar were found falsely registered as occupants in cramped flats in Bangkok.

19 Aug 2026 - 6:40PMvideocam

Indonesia

Indonesia seizes 2.6 tonnes of liquid meth in record drug bust

This is the second raid involving a Tanzanian-flagged vessel in two weeks. Almost all the crew are from Myanmar.

19 Aug 2026 - 3:30PM

Crew members from Tanzanian-flagged MV Rain Maker (seated) are photographed after their arrest on Monday. Photo: National Narcotics Agency

Vladimir Putin

Russia’s Putin hosts Myanmar leader, talks up energy projects

The president says the two countries are cooperating across a range of sectors, including energy, defence and even space exploration.

19 Aug 2026 - 1:41AM

Russia

Myanmar’s president heads to Moscow seeking Russian arms and oil

Fresh off a five-year military deal, Min Aung Hlaing is meeting Vladimir Putin for talks on further economic and security cooperation.

18 Aug 2026 - 5:15PM

Thailand

Thailand to review pardon rules after release of drug lord, 85, brings backlash

Laota Saenlee, a former anti-communist guerrilla turned drug runner, is freed after serving less than a decade of a life sentence.

18 Aug 2026 - 3:35PM

Laota Seanlee (centre) is escorted into a criminal court in Bangkok on December 13, 2017. Photo: AFP

US-Asean relations

US transshipment ‘scam’ claims put Asean exporters in a bind

Analysts say a report accusing nine Southeast Asian nations of helping China skirt tariffs conflates cheating with legitimate trade.

18 Aug 2026 - 5:33PMvideocam

A container lifter is used to organise goods containers at a port in Jakarta, Indonesia. Photo: AP

Thailand

How Cambodian worker exodus exposes Thailand’s fragile labour model

An estimated 780,000 Cambodian workers have left Thailand since last year’s border conflicts, affecting a wide range of industries.

16 Aug 2026 - 12:00PMvideocam

Asean

UN atrocity report adds friction to Myanmar junta’s push for legitimacy

The report says abuses escalated around the time Myanmar was conducting junta-led elections that saw Min Aung Hlaing elected as president.

14 Aug 2026 - 5:30PMvideocam

Laos

‘Struggling to help’: surging waters leave Mekong communities without aid

Tens of thousands have been displaced in Laos and Myanmar, with rescue efforts hampered by threadbare resources.

13 Aug 2026 - 8:31PM

People wade through a flooded area due to monsoon rains and rising river water levels in Wetlet, Myanmar’s Sagaing region on Monday. Photo: AFP

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.

13 Aug 2026 - 11:30AM

People fill the streets in Kwun Tong at lunchtime. In driving economic innovation, the protection of human capital, and mental health, is strategic. Photo: Dickson Lee

Asean

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

Being most exposed to AI does not mean that jobs would be replaced – just that some could move up the value chain or evolve, analysts say.

14 Aug 2026 - 5:23PMvideocam

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

The attacks rose ahead of elections held in December and January, according to a team of UN investigators.

12 Aug 2026 - 7:55PM

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Myanmar

Who will look after ageing Asia when its carers grow old?

Asia’s care economy is booming, but its biggest supplier nations are ageing too, raising fears of a coming carer shortfall.

Up in smoke: why Southeast Asia failed to halt the haze

As Singapore weighs joining China-led AI body, does it risk US retaliation?

US sanctions Chinese-language Xinbi Guarantee marketplace over cyber scams

Washington also seizes Telegram channels and US$52 million in cryptocurrency linked to the platform’s alleged illicit operations.

12 South Koreans arrested in Thailand scam centre crackdown

Police say the alleged scammers entered Thailand from a neighbouring country and rented a luxury house south of Bangkok.

‘Can’t live without fighting’: Myanmar youth find solace in bareknuckle lethwei

Amid five years of devastating conflict, young fighters embrace the traditional bloodsport as both self-defence and refuge.

Southeast Asia’s scam gangs regroup after Cambodia’s crackdown

Dislodged from Cambodian compounds, cyberscam cartels have been setting up shop in Laos, Myanmar and even Malaysia.

US Congress seeks to identify foreign countries behind scam calls

Inquiry comes as US government reports tying much of the financial damage from scams to Chinese criminal networks based in Southeast Asia.

Small state, big agenda: Singapore prepares to steer Asean through crisis

The city state takes the helm on Asean’s 60th anniversary amid civil war, tariff threats and rising global tensions.

India rescues 2 Chinese nationals from sunken cargo ship, searches for others

The Panama-flagged vessel had ‌24 crew on board, including 20 Chinese nationals, according to India’s coastguard.

Myanmar air strike kills 14 praying at monastery, rebel witnesses say

Public buildings, most often monasteries and schools, are frequently the sites of reported air strikes according to a UN report from last week.

.css-1pcrwvc{color:#2aa191;}Asian Angle | SpaceX’s Starlink blackout punishes Myanmar civilians, not just cybercriminals

An estimated 13 million people – nearly a quarter of Myanmar’s population – rely on Starlink for internet access.

.css-1f6sr3w{color:#727272;}Exclusive | Waico vs Pax Silica: Southeast Asia caught between China and US in AI race

Beijing reportedly offers exclusive perks to attract Global South partners while describing the American-led body as exclusionary.

Asia faces scam ‘epidemic’ threat as gangs exploit agentic AI, analyst warns

The technology could allow scam syndicates to carry out multiple tasks to cheat victims at the same time without needing human intervention.

US designates academic Min Zin as ‘wrongfully detained’ in China

Case adds friction weeks before Trump-Xi summit, with Washington pressing Beijing over Americans held in the country.

Editorial | ‘Transshipment scam’ is not a global conspiracy but a warning to the US

The White House’s accusation that over 40 nations are involved in a shadow network that harms the US betrays a misunderstanding of how trade works.

Fake residency of foreign children in Thailand spotlights widening corruption

Seven people were arrested after nearly 200 children from Myanmar were found falsely registered as occupants in cramped flats in Bangkok.

Indonesia seizes 2.6 tonnes of liquid meth in record drug bust

This is the second raid involving a Tanzanian-flagged vessel in two weeks. Almost all the crew are from Myanmar.

Russia’s Putin hosts Myanmar leader, talks up energy projects

The president says the two countries are cooperating across a range of sectors, including energy, defence and even space exploration.

Myanmar’s president heads to Moscow seeking Russian arms and oil

Fresh off a five-year military deal, Min Aung Hlaing is meeting Vladimir Putin for talks on further economic and security cooperation.

Thailand to review pardon rules after release of drug lord, 85, brings backlash

Laota Saenlee, a former anti-communist guerrilla turned drug runner, is freed after serving less than a decade of a life sentence.

US transshipment ‘scam’ claims put Asean exporters in a bind

Analysts say a report accusing nine Southeast Asian nations of helping China skirt tariffs conflates cheating with legitimate trade.

How Cambodian worker exodus exposes Thailand’s fragile labour model

An estimated 780,000 Cambodian workers have left Thailand since last year’s border conflicts, affecting a wide range of industries.

UN atrocity report adds friction to Myanmar junta’s push for legitimacy

The report says abuses escalated around the time Myanmar was conducting junta-led elections that saw Min Aung Hlaing elected as president.

‘Struggling to help’: surging waters leave Mekong communities without aid

Tens of thousands have been displaced in Laos and Myanmar, with rescue efforts hampered by threadbare resources.

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

Being most exposed to AI does not mean that jobs would be replaced – just that some could move up the value chain or evolve, analysts say.

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

The attacks rose ahead of elections held in December and January, according to a team of UN investigators.

Asian Angle | SpaceX’s Starlink blackout punishes Myanmar civilians, not just cybercriminals

Exclusive | Waico vs Pax Silica: Southeast Asia caught between China and US in AI race