Burma’s highest court rejected an appeal Monday by Aung San Suu Kyi’s lawyers to reinstate two key witnesses in a trial that could send the pro-democracy leader to prison for five years. (more…)

Several monks on Saturday refrained from going out to collect swan offering in Myingyan town in Mandalay division, following a visit and offerings made by junta’s Minister of Industries (1) Aung Thawng. (more…)

Authorities on Sunday detained a journalist who tried to take a photograph of the 13-year old girl who authorities have announced is suffering from the first detected instance of A/H1N1, or swine flu, in Burma. (more…)

Three Kachin ceasefire groups in northern Burma last week, gave into the demands of the Burmese military junta of transforming their armed-wings into the kind of forces that the regime wants, said sources close to the groups. (more…)

Russian and Italian engineering companies are reported to be involved in the development of a huge iron ore mine in Burma’s eastern Shan state that campaigners say could displace more than 7,000 homes. (more…)

Bilateral trade between Myanmar and Indonesia hit $238.69 million in the fiscal year of 2008-09 which ended in March, according to the Ministry of Commerce today. (more…)

The United Kingdom is leading among the European Union countries in importing Myanmar’s marine products, the local weekly Popular News reported on Monday. (more…)

A 13-year-old girl has become the first confirmed carrier of the H1N1 swine flu virus in Burma after being hospitalized on 26 June following a trip to Singapore last week, a Burmese newspaper reported on Saturday. (more…)

The following is a condensed version of what appears in Shan Drug Watch, Issue # 2, published today to mark the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking – Editor (more…)

North Korea should calm regional fears by explaining its relations with Burma at the 16th Asean Regional Forum (ARF) to be held in Phuket, Thailand, July16-23. (more…)

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will visit Myanmar this week to urge its military leaders to press ahead with democratic reforms in the country formerly known as Burma, a U.N. spokeswoman said on Monday. (more…)

The U.S. ambassador to the United Nations says the U.S. is keeping close tabs on a suspected North Korea arms ship. (more…)

UN envoy Ibrahim Gambari has left Burma after a two-day visit aimed at paving the way for a possible visit by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon. (more…)

Recent evidence of the closer relationship between Burma and North Korea exposes the complete failure of the Burmese regime’s diplomacy and foreign policy in the face of increasing pressure by international and regional governments. (more…)

North Korea is great at scaring its neighbors. The isolated dictatorship carries a real nuclear threat, and tested its latest device this May in an underground bunker. Tensions in East Asia heightened this week after Pyongyang threatened “a fire shower of nuclear retaliation” if the U.S. or its allies in the region attempted any provocative action when trying to curb North Korea’s missile program. Even those with historically warmer ties to the pariah state, such as Russia and China, have bristled at Pyongyang’s latest moves. Still, North Korea may not be without friends. (more…)

Relations between Burma and North Korea have attracted intense attention in recent weeks, as suspicions grow that the two pariah states are joining forces in a bid to thwart international sanctions against them. (more…)