July 27: In a statement issued on 27 July, Burma’s main opposition party, the National League for Democracy (NLD) urged the country’s ruling junta to implement its pledge for reconciliation and democratization. “State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) said that it had decided to relinquish its turn to be the Chair of ASEAN in 2006 because it would want to focus its attention on the ongoing national reconciliation and democratization process,” the statement says. “NLD believes that with the present situation, the implementation of national reconciliation and democratization and economic developments are genuinely and truly essential for the country.”
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The fact is best illustrated by one of my favorite comic strips where the king, speaking from on top of the tower of his castle, announces, “I see a land of milk and honey,” and one of the peasants, who are of course on the ground, turns to his neighbor and groans, “The view must be different up there.”
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Beijing: CNOOC Ltd. is trying to decide between raising its bid for US oil company Unocal Corp. to as much as US $20 billion (€15.4 billion) or drop it entirely due to political obstacles in Washington, newspapers reported Friday.
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Vientiane: The Asia-Pacific region’s main security forum called on Myanmar’s military junta on Friday to speed up its planned transition to multi-party rule, saying it was concerned about the lack of democratic reform.
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Vientiane: Asian foreign ministers said Friday the West’s policy of isolating Myanmar was not working, and their own backdoor diplomacy was more effective in persuading the military state to reform.
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Vientiane: Foreign ministers wrapped up Asia’s main security forum Friday with a pledge to step up intelligence sharing on terrorism, which they called a threat to the “peace, order and security” of the region.
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Vientiane: The pressure is not off military-ruled Myanmar after it agreed to forego the chairmanship of Southeast Asia’s ASEAN group, bending to US and EU demands, Thailand’s foreign minister said here Friday.
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July 28: A top Chinese diplomat’s decision to back out of a regional security meeting in Laos in favor of a visit to Rangoon came only a day after the military-ruled Burma backed out of an opportunity to assume the chair of Asean in 2006.
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The issue of Burma’s scheduled chairmanship of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in 2006 has preoccupied the member governments, in the face of international pressure to force Rangoon to stand down
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