UN: Opium Output in Myanmar Soars to Nine-Year High After Coup, Economic Slump |
The surge in cultivation of illicit opium poppies, used to make many narcotics, reverses a decade-long decline, the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) said in a new report [PDF]. Myanmar’s legal economy has stumbled (Nikkei) as the country bears international sanctions applied after its 2021 military coup. Energy price shocks related to Russia’s war in Ukraine have also taken a toll.
Since the coup, an armed opposition has battled Myanmar’s military government, and both sides’ search for weapons has stimulated illegal economic activity, Nikkei reported. UNODC official Jeremy Douglas called for countries in the region to address the rise in opium poppy cultivation by increasing monitoring and providing economic alternatives for growers.
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“Addressing the issue will require engaging with the challenges faced by people located in a traditional opium-cultivating area, including their isolation, economic vulnerability, and the escalating conflict,” Al Jazeera’s Kevin Doyle writes.
“[Myanmar’s] conflict has spread, with resistance movements across the country, sometimes alongside pre-existing ethnic armed groups. Refugees have spilled into neighboring nations, more than a million people are internally displaced, and organized crime has flourished. Inevitably, the regime has proven economically ruinous,” Bloomberg’s Clara Ferreira Marques writes.
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Philippines Posts Highest Annual Growth Since 1976 |
The Philippines’ gross domestic product (GDP) grew 7.6 percent (FT) in 2022, which the government attributed largely to the country’s post-lockdown reopening. This year’s growth projections for the Philippines and neighbors such as Indonesia and Malaysia are above the world average.
U.S./China: A U.S. federal judge sentenced (Chicago Tribune) a former Chicago graduate student and Chinese national to eight years in prison for spying for the Chinese government.
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Delhi Police Detain Thirteen Students Trying to Watch Banned Modi Documentary |
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Middle East and North Africa |
Israeli Raid Kills Nine in Palestinian Refugee Camp |
Israel’s military said the raid in the West Bank city of Jenin targeted an extremist group (Times of Israel) that was planning an imminent attack. Three alleged members of the group and an elderly woman were among those killed in the ensuing gun battle, Israeli and Palestinian officials said. Bahrain/Qatar: The countries’ leaders spoke on the phone (Reuters) about joint efforts to “resolve differences,” Bahraini state media said. The call came two years after Bahrain and three of its Arab partners lifted a nearly four-year boycott against Qatar.
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France to Withdraw Troops From Burkina Faso Within a Month |
France currently stations (NYT) around four hundred counterinsurgency troops in the country, but Burkina Faso said Monday that it would terminate their permission to remain.
Tanzania: Leading opposition figure Tundu Lissu returned to the country (East African) after several years in exile. A meeting in Brussels last year with President Samia Suluhu Hassan paved the way for his return.
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Russia Launches Air Strikes on Kyiv, Other Ukrainian Cities |
Officials in Ukraine said most missiles were repelled by the country’s air defenses, while Kyiv’s mayor said one person was killed (FT). The barrage came a day after the United States and Germany announced they were sending main battle tanks to Ukraine. CFR’s Max Boot explains why the U.S. and German tanks will be critical to Ukraine’s fight against Russia.
Russia: A court ordered that the country’s oldest human rights organization, the Moscow Helsinki Group, must close (Moscow Times).
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Brazil’s Lula Calls for Mercosur to Finalize Europe Deal Before Opening China Talks |
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva called for customs union Mercosur to quickly ratify (AFP) a trade deal with the European Union before it begins negotiations on a deal with China. Meanwhile, Mercosur member Uruguay’s talks about its own trade deal with China have sparked rumors the bloc could break up. This Backgrounder examines Mercosur.
Venezuela: UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk arrives in Caracas (MercoPress) today for talks with the government, opposition, and civil society groups about Venezuela’s human rights situation.
This In Brief looks at U.S. sanctions on Venezuela. |
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Defense Department to Increase Artillery Production Sixfold |
The Pentagon aims to boost production of artillery shells (NYT) by 500 percent within two years due to expectations about Ukraine’s needs and to build up U.S. stockpiles in anticipation of future conflicts, an Army report said. |
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Council on Foreign Relations |
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