On May 3 and 4, delegates of the government of Myanmar (formerly known as Burma) attended a meeting of senior economic officials in Toronto — at the invitation of the government of Canada. Ken Sunquist, Assistant Deputy Minister of International Business at International Trade Canada, co-chaired the meeting. He responded to protests about the invitation by asserting that while “we discourage companies from trading and investing in Burma,” we could not miss an opportunity to “show them the benefits of working together toward a different future.”

(more…)

The bombings in Myanmar at the weekend – the worst in more than 20 years – throw the country’s many problems into sharp focus.

(more…)

Burma’s blaming of the ‘usual suspects’ for the latest bombs is highly questionable; it’s time Thailand stops backing the junta.

(more…)

Singapore: The United States is intent on deepening economic and political ties with Southeast Asia but not by trying to contain China’s rising influence in the region, US Deputy Secretary of State Robert Zoellick said Tuesday.

(more…)

Bangkok: Thailand is working towards ending a regional deadlock over military-ruled Myanmar that could see Yangon forego its chairmanship of ASEAN in 2006, senior Thai officials and sources said Tuesday.

(more…)

Yangon: A Singapore-based oil company, the Myanmar Petroleum Resources Limited (MPRL) Exploration and Production, has planned to drill six more new test wells in an onshore oil field in central Myanmar’s Magway division this year, Myanmar Times reported in this week’s issue.

(more…)

Thailand is reconsidering whether to proceed with the ‘Thailand Exhibition’ in Myanmar planned for November following the bomb blasts in the capital Yangon on Saturday.

(more…)

Residents of Tachilek, the Burmese market town on Thailand’s northern border, were told Tuesday to close down shops and markets as tension rose tangibly in the area. A 10 PM to dawn curfew has been in force in the town since Saturday’s bombings in Rangoon. Foreigners were told to leave Tachilek and make for Thailand.

(more…)

Yangon: Myanmar nationals who fear their relatives were caught up in Yangon’s deadly bombings said Tuesday they were in the dark over the fate of family members, as the junta restricted some information about victims.

(more…)

Yangon: Military-ruled Myanmar urged public vigilance against “terrorist acts” on Tuesday as rumours swirled over who was behind a series of weekend bomb attacks and whether more people had died than state media has reported.

(more…)

Yangon: Military-ruled Myanmar urged public vigilance against “terrorist acts” on Tuesday as rumours swirled over who was behind a series of weekend bomb attacks and whether more people had died than state media has reported.

(more…)

May 9: A western diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity, told DVB that the safety of Burma’s democracy leader and Nobel laureate, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi who has been kept under house arrest since May 2003, is increasingly becoming a matter of serious concern. (more…)

A suspicious object, thought to have been a bomb, was found near a sports stadium in Rangoon on Monday. Since Saturday’s devastating bomb attacks in Rangoon, many scheduled activities that could have drawn large crowds have been cancelled, according to residents.

(more…)

Rangoon has ordered a state of emergency in each of the 12 military regions in Burma beginning

(more…)