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Ending Burma sanctions: Spurring development, or helping the military?

By Francis Wade Wed, Apr 18, 2012 4:45PM UTC View Comments

Amid all the talk of economic reform in Burma, one major problem is yet to be properly addressed: at present nearly a quarter of the government’s budget goes directly to the military – in comparison, less than five percent is allocated for the health and education sectors combined. Despite efforts at reshaping the economy into...

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Burma sanctions: to keep, or not to keep?

By Francis Wade Thu, Apr 05, 2012 2:04PM UTC View Comments

Following last week’s resounding by-election win for Burma’s opposition, the expected re-engineering of international policy towards the country is already underway. The US has announced it will soon appoint an ambassador and relax sanctions (a presidential waiver on ‘national security grounds’ meant the decision did not need Congressional backing), while the EU looks set to...

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Opinion: West must not lift Burma sanctions too soon

By Kyi May Kaung Sun, Mar 11, 2012 11:30AM UTC View Comments

Countries that wish to see democracy and a free market in Burma should not lift sanctions too soon. Since nominally “civilian” President Thein Sein suspended the Myitsone Dam to much acclaim and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s visit to Burma late last year, the media spin by both Burmese language and Western publications that...

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UN report: North Korea and Iran share missile technology

By Andy Jackson Mon, May 16, 2011 9:28PM UTC View Comments

Nodong medium range missile on parade in Pyongyang (Army Recognition photo)

In news that will shock no one, a panel of experts assembled by the United Nations has found that North Korea and Iran have been cooperating in the development of missile technology. The report indicates that technology was transferred between the two remaining members of the “Axis of Evil” directly through their national airlines and...

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Is the EU endorsing Burma’s facelift?

By Francis Wade Tue, Apr 19, 2011 11:07PM UTC View Comments

The EU’s recent decision to modify its sanctions on Burma represents an overdue acknowledgment that policy to date has been weak and ineffective – something few would disagree with. Yet how it has gone about ‘improving’ them, surely its intended aim, is highly questionable. A statement released by the bloc last week announced that it...

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