#Myanmar

The Mahabodhi Temple in Bodh Gaya, known as the site where Siddhartha Gautama (Gautama Buddha) attained enlightenment, is one of the holiest pilgrimage sites in Buddhism. Hlaing is in Bodh Gaya for the weekend.

The five-day trip underscores the gradual return of regional re-engagement for Myanmar, five years after being shunned by many of its neighbors.

Myanmar’s state media says the leader of Myanmar’s military-backed government has embarked on an official visit to India, one of the country’s key regional partners.

President U Min Aung Hlaing will also visit Bodh Gaya in Bihar, and hold business and industry interactions in Mumbai

The 11-country Association of Southeast Asian Nations has shunned Myanmar from summits since its military launched a coup in 2021.

Myanmar relies heavily on gemstones as a major source of revenue, and produces as much as 90% of the world’s rubies, primarily from the Mogok region.

A delegation of ruling party legislators led by Manipur Home Minister Govindas Konthoujam visited the three affected villages to assess the situation.

From Independent RSS Feed: Miners unearth massive ruby gemstone thought to be second-largest ever

A 1996 discovery yielded a larger stone at 21,450 carats, however the newly found ruby is deemed more valuable due to its exceptional color and clarity

Miners in Myanmar have discovered a massive ruby, considered to be the second-largest by weight ever found in the country

Miners in Myanmar have discovered a massive ruby, considered to be the second-largest by weight ever found in the country.

Myanmar has announced the discovery of a massive ruby weighing 11,000 carats (2.2 kilograms), a rare find even for the country’s central gemstone hub of Mogok near Mandalay.

Myanmar has been largely sidelined by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations since a 2021 military coup that sparked a civil war.

Stone being paid $50,000 a month to ‘rebuild’ relations between Washington and Myanmar’s military-backed government

The transfer of Aung San Suu Kyi from prison to house arrest has been welcomed cautiously abroad, but experts say Myanmar's military may be using it to boost legitimacy as the nation remains engulfed in civil war.

From Independent RSS Feed: Aung San Suu Kyi’s son seeks help from France to prove his mother is alive after house arrest

Min Aung Hlaing, who has run the country for the last five years after a coup in February 2021, was named president on April 10, putting aside his military antecedents.

The snake has been named after Ayeyarwady River, the largest and one of the most important rivers in Myanmar.

On Thursday, authorities in Myanmar claimed they had transferred Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi from prison to house arrest. Her son Kim Aris spoke to NPR about his doubts about the regime's account.

After five years of war, armed resistance groups still challenge Myanmar's military across much of the country. But the generals are now stemming losses and reclaiming some territory.