GPS News
SINO DAILY
China's Myanmar consulate hit with explosive device: Junta chief to visit China next month
China's Myanmar consulate hit with explosive device: Junta chief to visit China next month
by AFP Staff Writers
Bangkok (AFP) Oct 19, 2024

China's consulate in Myanmar's city of Mandalay was attacked with an explosive device, local media said Saturday, adding that no deaths or injuries were reported.

The blast occurred at the consulate office in central Mandalay, south of the sprawling Royal Palace, around 7 pm Friday (1230 GMT Friday), local media said.

China is a major ally and arms supplier to Myanmar's junta, but it also maintains ties with ethnic groups fighting the military in Myanmar's northern Shan state, according to analysts.

Myanmar has been in turmoil since the military deposed the government of Aung San Suu Kyi and seized power in 2021.

A statement from the junta on Saturday night blamed "terrorists" for the incident, which it said it was investigating in cooperation with consulate officials.

It said security had found "a blast" had occurred and that it was "raising the necessary security measures".

"About two feet of clay tiles of the roof of the two-storey building were damaged," the statement said.

A Myanmar official in Mandalay confirmed to AFP there had been "an incident at the Chinese consulate office compound in Mandalay late evening yesterday".

"There was no one injured," the official said, without specifying the nature of the incident.

The Irrawaddy outlet reported a grenade had been thrown at the compound, which is usually guarded by members of Myanmar's security forces.

The Voice of Myanmar newspaper reported the consulate had been hit by an unidentified "explosion" without giving details.

China's embassy in Yangon did not respond to AFP's queries.

Myanmar junta chief to travel to China next month: sources close to military
Yangon (AFP) Oct 16, 2024 - Myanmar junta chief Min Aung Hlaing will travel to close ally China next month, two sources close to the military told AFP Wednesday, in what would be his first known trip there since he led a coup in 2021.

Min Aung Hlaing "is planning to go China in November... the trip has been planned since Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi visited Myanmar" in August, a source close to the military said.

"He (Min Aung Hlaing) will visit China next month," another source said.

Both sources requested anonymity to talk to the media.

AFP has contacted China's embassy in Yangon for comment.

A Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman said "I currently have no information to provide on your question", when asked about the trip at a regular press briefing on Wednesday.

Beijing is a major ally and arms supplier of the internationally isolated junta that is battling opponents across the country following its coup in 2021.

Analysts say Beijing also maintains ties with Myanmar ethnic armed groups that hold territory near its border.

Some of those groups have seized territory from the junta in northern Shan state, disrupting traffic along a vital trade highway to China.

Shan state borders China's Yunnan province and is a vital piece of Beijing's trillion-dollar Belt and Road Initiative.

Relations between Beijing and Naypyidaw cooled last year over the junta's failure to crack down on online scam compounds in Myanmar's borderlands targeting Chinese citizens.

The compounds were staffed by citizens of China and other countries who were often trafficked and forced to work swindling their compatriots in an industry analysts say is worth billions.

Analysts suggest Beijing later gave tacit approval to an offensive by an alliance of ethnic rebel groups across Shan state, which the alliance said was launched partly to root out the scam compounds.

In August, China said it supports the junta's plan to hold fresh elections and return the conflict-torn country to a "democratic transition".

Opponents say the polls will be neither free nor fair, with many opposition parties banned and clashes occurring across much of the country.

Min Aung Hlaing has visited Russia -- another major ally and arms supplier -- several times since the coup, including a meeting with President Vladimir Putin in 2022.

Related Links
China News from SinoDaily.com

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters
Tweet

RELATED CONTENT
The following news reports may link to other Space Media Network websites.
SINO DAILY
China to almost double support for unfinished housing projects
Beijing (AFP) Oct 17, 2024
China said Thursday it would boost credit available for unfinished housing projects to more than $500 billion as it unveiled another round of measures to shore up the sector and try to reignite the economy. The real-estate sector has long accounted for around a quarter of gross domestic product and experienced dazzling growth for two decades but a years-long housing slump has battered growth as authorities eye a target of around five percent for 2024. At a briefing, housing minister Ni Hong offe ... read more

SINO DAILY
Picky protection rules hamper Swiss mushrooming craze

Microbial emissions, not fossil fuels, drove methane surge from 2020 to 2022

Palestinian seeds join Arctic 'doomsday vault'

Global research reveals key factors driving woody species spread in arid regions

SINO DAILY
SCALE Nanotech reveals advanced GMOD technology for drones, avionics, and space

Taiwan's TSMC stops shipments to client after chips sent to Huawei

SKhynix posts record quarterly profit on strong AI demand

Taiwan's TSMC stops shipments to client after chips sent to Huawei

SINO DAILY
German flying taxi startup to file for bankruptcy

Hydrogen aviation has to be done properly or not at all

US regulator finalizes air taxi rules

Navy identifies 2 female pilots killed in fighter jet crash in Washington state

SINO DAILY
Mercedes reports profit plunge on China woes

'Significant gaps' remain between China, EU over EV duties

Strong auto prices lift GM results as it eyes China revamp

Chinese EV maker Xpeng eyes Europe factories after tariffs

SINO DAILY
China sees little relief from trade tensions as US goes to the polls

China to hold key meeting next month as markets await stimulus details

Asia markets diverge after Tesla boosts Wall Street

China should use fiscal policy to boost growth: IMF

SINO DAILY
Adaptability of trees endures through millions of years of climate shifts

EU states approve one-year delay of deforestation rules

Colombia grants Indigenous groups new environmental authority

Indonesia biomass drive threatens key forests and orangutans

SINO DAILY
CATALYST introduces INSIGHTS 2.0 for smarter multi-source data visualization

Future of Copernicus Sentinel Expansion missions secured

NASA's C-130 aircraft en route to india in support of NISAR mission

The View from Space Keeps Getting Better

SINO DAILY
New Technique Enables Mass Production of Metal Nanowires

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.