Myanmar Crisis

Travelers at Myanmar's Yangon international airport in March 2020. The country is set to allow international passengers with a business visa to travel in and out of the country as soon as January, and tourists by March. 
Myanmar Crisis

Myanmar plans to allow international flights from January

Restart expected to begin with business travelers and expand to tourists

16 November 2021
From left: Myanmar's military chief Min Aung Hlaing, Japan's Yohei Sasakawa, China's Sun Guoxiang and Thailand's Don Pramudwinai (Source photos by Yuichi Nitta, EPA/Jiji and Reuters) 
Myanmar Crisis

Japan, China, Thai envoys diversify Myanmar diplomatic focus

Nations shift from collective path to specific goals ahead of China-ASEAN summit

16 November 2021
Danny Fenster has been held in a Myanmar prison since May. (Family courtesy photo via AP)
Myanmar Crisis

Myanmar regime frees U.S. journalist Danny Fenster

He is making his way home via Qatar over next two days

15 November 2021
ASEAN wants Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, commander-in-chief of the Myanmar military, right, to allow ousted democratic leader Aung San Suu Kyi to meet with a representative from the bloc. (Nikkei montage/Shinya Sawai/Ken Kobayashi/Reuters)
Comment

If ASEAN cannot pull Myanmar in line, how can it progress?

Democracy remains tough goal, as Southeast Asian bloc faces existential risk

11 November 2021
Family and friends awaiting the release of prisoners, including protesters against the military regime, outside Insein Prison in October.
Interview

U.S. ex-diplomat calls for humanitarian aid resumption to Myanmar

Bill Richardson visit with military chief criticized by rights groups

11 November 2021
Myanmar's military rulers are working out an electoral system that would help them win more seats at the expense of Aung San Suu Kyi's popular National League for Democracy.
Myanmar Crisis

Myanmar's military plots to change electoral system, tighten grip

Regime shifts to proportional representation for possible 2023 election

8 November 2021
People hold placards in Yangon calling for a boycott of products made by companies associated with Myanmar's military government. (Photo courtesy of Ma We Nae)
Myanmar Crisis

Myanmar's shadow government to issue $1bn in zero-interest bonds

Funds to support those resisting military government after February takeover

6 November 2021
Noeleen Heyzer, the newly appointed special envoy on Myanmar: she has important cultural and geographical links to the country.
Opinion

Myanmar crisis calls for international diplomatic reset

New U.N. special envoy may deal with military regime more effectively than ASEAN

2 November 2021
Indonesian President Joko Widodo speaks on October 26 during the virtual ASEAN summit, from which the head of Myanmar's military regime was barred. (Courtesy of Brunei government)
Comment

Can ASEAN overcome the 'Myanmar curse'?

Regional grouping struggles with changing dynamics due to 'pariah' member

1 November 2021
Workers at the site of the Thilawa Special Economic Zone in 2015. The industrial park was built with Japanese development assistance, and about half the businesses operating there are Japanese-owned.
Myanmar Crisis

Farewell, Myanmar: Corporate exodus grows, from Europe to India

Japanese companies torn on whether to stay or go as economic growth stalls

30 October 2021
A screen shows the virtual ASEAN Summit on Oct. 26, with a placeholder for Myanmar where its representative would have been. (Photo courtesy of Brunei government)
International relations

ASEAN laments Myanmar impasse at unprecedented 9-nation summit

After regime skips meeting entirely, bloc says troubled member needs 'time and political space'

27 October 2021
Aung San Suu Kyi, ousted as Myanmar's de facto leader, is on trial involving charges lodged against her by the military government.
Myanmar Crisis

Myanmar military imposes gag order on Suu Kyi's lawyers

Authorities fear 'loss of social order' as deposed leader's court testimony begins

27 October 2021
This week's virtual ASEAN Summit will be the first meeting of the 10-member bloc's leaders since they gathered in Jakarta in April. One -- Myanmar's top general -- is not invited this time.
International relations

ASEAN kicks off 3 days of summits as Myanmar threatens credibility

Bloc under growing pressure to show relevance in wake of AUKUS

26 October 2021
Construction work at many redevelopment projects funded by foreign investment has come to a halt in Myanmar. Photo was taken Oct. 8.
Myanmar Crisis

Myanmar FDI drops to 8-year low, reflecting post-takeover unrest

IMF expects economy to shrink next year as foreign currency revenue disappears

19 October 2021
ASEAN foreign ministers held an unscheduled virtual meeting Friday to discuss Myanmar's representation at the bloc's upcoming summit.
Myanmar Crisis

Consensus-based ASEAN tested by Myanmar army chief's exclusion

Diplomatic deadlock forced bloc to act as international pressure mounted

18 October 2021
Southeast Asian leaders attend an emergency summit in Jakarta on Apr. 24: not surprisingly, ASEAN efforts to implement a five-point plan on Myanmar have gone nowhere.
Opinion

Myanmar crisis highlights ASEAN's identity dilemma

Failure to manage difficult choices undermines bloc's credibility

18 October 2021
The commander-in-chief of Myanmar's armed forces, Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, a conference on international security in Moscow in June.
Myanmar Crisis

Myanmar military chief to be excluded from ASEAN summit

Foreign ministers see 'insufficient progress' in Naypyidaw, bloc's chair says

16 October 2021
A Telenor sign outside a cellphone retailer in Myanmar's Shan state, pictured in June 2018: the company's task now is to find a buyer for its local assets and wholly-owned subsidiary. (Photo by Yuichi Nitta)
Opinion

No easy exit for investors from post-military takeover Myanmar

Foreign companies face challenging problems withdrawing from the market

12 October 2021
Soldiers stand next to military vehicles in Yangon: unrest in Myanmar is only growing as the military and the parallel government in exile both turn to arms.
Comment

World powers need to stop Myanmar civil war before it is too late

Japan and international community must think outside the box for solution

7 October 2021
"At this point, Myanmar is not speaking," said U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric.
25 September 2021
Taliban fighters stand guard outside Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul on Aug. 16: the White House has praised the Taliban for being businesslike and professional on evacuations.
Opinion

Helping the Taliban but not Myanmar detrimental to Western interests

Naypyitaw's generals treated as bigger threat than the terrorists controlling Kabul

22 September 2021
There are believed to be between 120 and 300 militias under the People's Defense Force banner across Myanmar. (Photo taken from Facebook)
Myanmar Crisis

Attacks on Myanmar military spike following call for revolt

Pro-democracy camp abandons nonviolence amid growing crackdown

22 September 2021
A protester objecting to the Myanmar military's takeover of the country in Seoul on April 10.
Myanmar Crisis

Myanmar shadow government sets up office in South Korea

First 'mission' in Asia for democratically elected leaders overthrown by military

18 September 2021
A money-changer's office in Yangon: Myanmar's currency, the kyat, has fallen 20% to 30% since a military takeover of the government on Feb. 1.
Myanmar Crisis

Myanmar currency hovers near all-time low

Flip-flopping on forex trading band rules rattles market, pushes down kyat

16 September 2021
A flash protest in Yangon on May 2. Opposition to Myanmar's military government continues to swell.  (Photo by Berry)
The Big Story

Myanmar, a violent tale of two governments

A failed state plunges toward civil war

15 September 2021