Burmese President Thein Sein has denied his country is trying to obtain nuclear weapons from North Korea, describing allegations of an illicit programme as “unfounded”, in remarks published Tuesday.

“We are not acquiring nuclear weapons from North Korea,” the Straits Times quoted him as saying in an interview during a four-day state visit to Singapore. (more…)

The recent developments in Burma are increasingly being followed by the international community.

On January 23 the European national foreign ministers met in Brussels to discuss the latest events and developments in Burma, including the release recently of a significant number
of political prisoners. As a result of the meeting, the European Union’s visa ban on Burma’s president, vice presidents, cabinet members and parliamentary speakers was suspended. (more…)

The Philippines has called on the West to end sanctions against Burma, because of its “unprecedented political and economic reforms.”

A staunch critic of the former Burmese military regime, the Philippines said in a foreign affairs statement the recent political prisoners’ amnesty justifies the removal of sanctions. (more…)

Beijing — China said on Monday it is “glad” to see more contact between Myanmar and Western countries including the United States.

“We are glad to see the United States and other Western countries increasing contact; resuming and developing relations with Myanmar,” said Foreign Ministry Spokesman Liu Weimin in response to a question on the relationship between the United States and Myanmar. (more…)

In a move that could go a long way in enhancing defence ties, India has offered training spots at the National Defence Academy to Myanmar. While Myanmar is yet to respond to the offer, it has expressed interest in sending its officers and soldiers for training at the Counter Insurgency Jungle Warfare Training School in Mizoram. (more…)

In order to meet energy demands in its resource-crunched eastern, southern and central parts, China is constructing oil and gas pipelines in Myanmar, almost reaching to the seashores of Bay of Bengal. Currently, the China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), in agreement with the Myanmar Oil and Gas Enterprise (MOGE) and the Myanmar state security forces, is engaged in laying a 982 km (620 miles) long crude oil pipeline from Kyaukpyu Port on the western coast of Arakan State linking Kunming after entering the border city of Ruili in Yunnan Province of China at a cost of US $2.5 billion. (more…)

Bangkok – Myanmar’s army chief held a rare meeting with Thailand’s defence minister on Monday, when they discussed the opening of new border checkpoints close to a planned multi-billion dollar industrial zone in Dawei. (more…)

Sydney—Australia will remove some individuals from its Myanmar sanctions target list, a move that Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd said on Monday reflects progress towards democracy in the Southeast Asian nation.

Canberra currently applies targeted financial sanctions and travel restrictions on nominated individuals in Myanmar. Tourism officials, former government ministers and deputy ministers who have left politics will now be removed from the list. (more…)

Tokyo (Kyodo) — Japanese Foreign Minister Koichiro Gemba’s tight schedule for the year-end and New Year holiday season was rearranged quickly after the abrupt announcement last week of North Korean leader Kim Jong Il’s death. But his visit to Myanmar was not subject to change. (more…)

Bangkok – Thailand’s premier Yingluck Shinawatra offered Aung San Suu Kyi her support in a coming by-election during a historic meeting with the democracy icon in Myanmar, a Thai official said Wednesday.

In Suu Kyi’s first-ever meeting with the leader of a foreign country, the pair’s half-hour talks in Yangon on Tuesday were held in a “good atmosphere”, Titima Chaisang, chief Thai government spokeswoman, told AFP. (more…)

Vietnam and Myanmar have agreed to boost cooperation in trade and investment, with two-way trade expected to reach 500 million USD in 2015.

The agreement was reached between Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung and Myanmar President Thein Sein during their talks in the Myanmar capital city of Nay Pyi Taw on Dec. 21.
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Former Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra has confirmed that he visited Burma last week to pave the way for a trip to the country by his sister, the current Thai PM Yingluck Shinawatra, raising concerns that relations between the two neighbors could once again become entangled in Thaksin’s business interests. (more…)

Beijing – China’s top diplomat and Myanmar’s president agreed on Monday to steer a steady course on relations which have been strained by the former Burma’s suspension of a China-funded dam and Washington’s tentative moves to re-engage with the country. (more…)

He kept his quick wit throughout jail terms, torture and solitary confinement, but it seems nothing quite prepared Myanmar’s most famous comedian for his first trip out of the military-dominated state.

“When I saw the airplane I got a shock, when I saw the airport I got a shock, when I saw the big building and big bridge and good road I got a shock,” he told a packed audience that turned out to hear him in Bangkok.
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Nay Pyi Taw, The Fourth Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) Summit opened at the Myanmar International Convention Center here Tuesday under the theme “Beyond 2012: Towards a New Decade of GMS Strategic Development Partnership”.
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Academics and human rights advocates have urged the public to closely monitor Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra’s two-day visit to Burma today during which transport and energy development plans will be high on her agenda.

Critics expressed concern over possible conflicts of interest after ousted former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who is Ms Yingluck’s elder brother, stopped over in Burma while he was on his way to Nepal last week. (more…)

China’s bid to boost security through new multilateral mechanisms and joint patrols along the Mekong River promises to change the region’s strategic dynamic. While the unprecedented move underscores China’s desire to protect its fast expanding trade links with Southeast Asia, continued banditry and violence point towards the challenge Beijing will face in bringing multilateral order to one of the region’s more lawless terrains. (more…)

Myanmar believes “things can change” in North Korea after the death of Kim Jong-Il, a government official said Monday, adding that not much was known about his son and successor Kim Jong-Un.

Allegations of nuclear cooperation between the two isolated nations have been a top concern for the international community, particularly US lawmakers, although Myanmar has recently made assurances it would abide by UN resolutions. (more…)

The void left in Thailand’s labour force by the nearly 200,000 migrants that fled the country to escape heavy flooding in recent months will be filled by thousands of Burmese currently being brought into the country. (more…)

South Korea will resume offering loans to Myanmar six years after it halted its development assistance to the Southeast Asian country in 2005 given the regime’s repression of human rights. (more…)