Today's news: New Year's amnesty in Myanmar for 5,000 prisoners, except political prisoners; Washington's sanctions on Iranian oil exports also affect China; The Maldives bans Israeli tourists in retaliation for the war in Gaza; Bangkok unveils the first police robot created with artificial intelligence; Japan is a favourite destination for Taiwanese tourists.

CAMBODIA-CHINA

On his trip to Southeast Asia, Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived this morning in Cambodia on a very special day: today marks the 50th anniversary of the start of the terrible genocide unleashed by Pol Pot's Khmer Rouge, one of the darkest chapters in 20th-century history. In his speech upon arrival in front of King Norodom Sihamoni and Senate President Hun Sen, President Xi obviously made no reference to the anniversary, but said that ‘the bilateral ties between China and Cambodia, forged and nurtured with care by successive generations of leaders on both sides, have withstood the test of the changing international environment and remained as strong as ever’.

MYANMAR

The military junta has granted an amnesty to nearly 5,000 prisoners for New Year's Eve, who will be able to leave prison today. Activists, opponents and political prisoners - thousands arrested since the coup in February 2021 - such as Aung San Suu Kyi, who remains in prison, are excluded from the measure. Other prisoners will have their sentences reduced by a sixth, except for those who have committed serious crimes, including illegal association and terrorism, which have been used to imprison opponents. Today, Burmese leader Min Aung Hlaing is making a rare trip abroad to Bangkok to meet with Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, with Kuala Lumpur chairing the ASEAN bloc this year.

INDIA

Wheat stocks in government warehouses rose by 57% to their highest level in three years at the start of the new harvest year. As of 1 April, reserves stood at 11.8 million tonnes, well above the target of 7.46 million tonnes and 4 million more than in the same period last year. Rice reserves also totalled a record 63.09 million tonnes, exceeding Delhi's target of 13.6 million.

IRAN - CHINA - USA

Washington yesterday issued new sanctions against Iranian oil exports, which also affect an independent ‘Teapot’ refinery based in China. The administration of US President Donald Trump wants to put pressure on Tehran ahead of nuclear talks. After initial contacts in Oman, a new meeting between the parties is scheduled for the weekend in Rome.

MALDIVES - ISRAEL - GAZA

This week, the Maldives ratified an amendment to its immigration laws, banning visitors with Israeli passports in response to the war in Gaza. However, citizens of the Jewish state with a second passport will be allowed to enter the archipelago. In 2025, there are already over 700,000 tourists; last year, 11,000 Israelis visited the islands.

THAILAND

The Royal Thai Police (RTP) yesterday shared photos of the country's first AI-powered robot police officer, named ‘Colonel Nakhonpathom Plod Phai’ and deployed in Nakhon Pathom province for the Songkran festival. Nicknamed ‘AI police cyborg 1.0’, he is a Robocop-style officer equipped with AI-powered smart cameras capable of 360-degree observation.

TAIWAN - JAPAN

Over 75% of Taiwanese say that Japan is their favourite country, followed by South Korea with a meagre 4%, then China and the United States at 3%. This is according to a study by the Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association conducted between December and January on thousands of Taiwanese aged between 20 and 80. The Land of the Rising Sun has remained the most popular country since 2008, when the survey began, although this year's approval rating has increased by 16 points compared to 2022.

RUSSIA

The court in Yekaterinburg in the Urals has dissolved the ‘Rojzman Foundation’, a charity for children with rare diseases founded by former governor and now opposition politician Evgeny Rojzman. The charge is ‘unjustified expenditure’, which is denied by the organisation itself, which also raised funds for expensive medicines for spinal muscular atrophy.

TAJIKISTAN

Tajikistan's President Emomali Rakhmon has signed amendments to the Criminal Code introducing severe penalties for the illegal manipulation of electricity meters. Heavy fines and prison sentences of up to 10 years are envisaged for tampering with meter readings in order to avoid paying for energy supplied or for off-grid use.

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