Regional news from Southeast Asia in English — ASEAN politics, economy and diplomacy, covered by Thai PBS World.
Thailand and Myanmar have agreed to establish a task force to handle humanitarian assistance for both Thai and Burmese people living along the border, who are affected by the ongoing fighting in Myanmar. Thailand has expressed hopes that Myanmar can resolve its ongoing internal conflicts peacefully, said Thai Foreign Minister Parnpree Bahiddha-Nukara. Parnpree emphasised that
Phnom Penh, Cambodia – Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet vowed Friday to continue relocating thousands of families from the Angkor Wat temple complex, despite growing international condemnation from rights groups. Officials have long maintained that about 10,000 families have willingly agreed to leave the sprawling UNESCO World Heritage site for Run Ta Ek, a new community
Yangon, Myanmar – Myanmar’s commercial hub Yangon is facing a fuel shortage, residents and junta-controlled media said Wednesday, with hundreds of vehicles queueing up at dawn in the hope of securing petrol. The state-run Global New Light of Myanmar newspaper said the shortage had begun on Tuesday and was “due to delays in oil delivery from
Yangon, Myanmar – Myanmar’s junta chief has called on ethnic armed groups battling the military across the country to find a political solution, state media reported on Tuesday. The junta is reeling from coordinated offensives near the borders with China, India and Thailand, in what analysts say is the biggest threat to its rule since it
Padang, Indonesia – Eleven hikers were found dead Monday and another 12 were missing after a volcano erupted in Indonesia, with rescuers racing to carry injured and burned survivors down the mountain on foot. Rescuers worked through the night to find dozens of hikers stranded on Mount Marapi on the island of Sumatra after it spewed
Manila, Philippines – A magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck off the coast of the southern Philippines early Monday, the United States Geological Survey said, the latest in a slew of strong quakes all concentrated in the same area. Monday’s quake hit just before 4:00 am local time, (2000 GMT Sunday), at a depth of 30 kilometres (18
As global tributes to late US diplomat Henry Kissinger poured in, his death stirred fury across Southeast Asia. Homage has been paid to Kissinger’s realpolitik and intellectual heft as secretary of state to US presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford. But in Southeast Asia, millions have remembered when the United States bombed swathes of Laos
Marawi, Philippines – At least three people were killed and seven wounded in a bomb attack on a Catholic mass in the insurgency-plagued southern Philippines on Sunday, officials said. The blast happened during a regular service at Mindanao State University’s gymnasium in Marawi, the country’s largest Muslim city, regional police Chief Allan Nobleza said. “We’re
Vietnam’s National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue will pay a four-day to Thailand next week, according to Vietnam’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. His counterpart, Wan Muhammad Noor Matha, will host Dinh Hue at the National Assembly on December 7-10. During his stay in Bangkok, the two sides are expected to sign a memorandum of understanding
Manila – Evacuations were under way in the Philippines after a quake of at least magnitude 7.5 struck the southern region of Mindanao on Saturday night, triggering tsunami warnings in the country and in Japan, though a U.S. agency said the risk of large waves had passed. The U.S. Tsunami Warning System, which initially warned
Loikaw, Myanmar – Myanmar pro-democracy fighters in a battered pickup truck drive past abandoned and bombed-out houses in the eastern city of Loikaw, on their way to the front lines of the battle to capture their first state capital from the junta. “Our soldiers are from Loikaw township and it’s the main reason we are motivated. We
Thai and Lao police seized 14.8 million methamphetamine pills in Laotian capital of Vientiane between November 28 and 30, in joint operations between the police forces. Four Laotians and one Thai were arrested and detained by Laotian police for questioning. Pol Lt Gen Phanurat Lukboon, Thailand’s assistant national police chief, said that the huge drug
