15/05/2025

THURSDAY | MAY 15, 2025

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Cambodia, China begin largest-ever military drills

Thailand ends search at collapsed skyscraper site

BANGKOK: Thailand has declared an end to search operations at the site of a partially built skyscraper that collapsed during a March 28 earthquake and killed scores of workers, the city’s governor said. The 30-storey State Audit Office tower was the only building in the Thai capital that collapsed from the tremors caused by a 7.7 magnitude quake that struck central Myanmar about 1,020km away. An investigation is underway into why the building came down so easily while those in the rest of the city stood firm. Earthquakes and tremors of that scale are extremely rare in Thailand and the quake sparked panic in the city, which ground to a halt for most of the day. Authorities have recovered 89 bodies from the rubble and seven are still missing from one of the deadliest accidents of its kind in Thailand, which killed 96 people. The six-week operation in Bangkok involved hundreds of personnel, including international rescue teams in an around-the-clock effort during which search dogs and heavy equipment were deployed. The mission was severely hampered by the scale and weight of the debris. “I want to thank all those who helped,” Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittupunt told reporters. “This was a life changing incident for many and a lesson.” Authorities have identified 86 of the dead, while forensic tests are being conducted on 100 out of 313 fragments of human remains recovered from the site. The investigation is focusing on those involved in the construction of the building, which started in 2020. A Thai anti-corruption watchdog said it had flagged to authorities irregularities it found in the construction of the skyscraper before it collapsed, while industry officials said initial tests of materials at the site indicated the presence of substandard steel. – Reuters Pakistan returns captured guard NEW DELHI: Pakistan handed over yesterday an Indian border guard captured a day after an April attack in Kashmir which killed 26 people, the paramilitary border guard said. The attack near the tourist town of Pahalgam sparked a four-day conflict between India and Pakistan, which ended with a ceasefire on Saturday. Border Security Force soldier “Purnam Kumar Shaw, who had been in the custody of Pakistan Rangers since 23 April, was handed over to India,” BSF said in a statement. The handover was “conducted peacefully and in accordance with established protocols”, it said. No group has claimed responsibility for the April 22 attack but India blamed Pakistan for backing the attack, sparking a series of heated threats and diplomatic tit-for-tat measures. Islamabad rejects the accusations and called for an independent investigation. – AFP

needs to build confidence among its partners to say to the partners that China is growing, China is expanding, China is also getting stronger, both in size but also in technological advancement, as well as military might,” Ou Virak said. Cambodia is also expected to receive two warships from China. The first Golden Dragon drills were held in 2016, and in early 2017 Cambodia scrapped a similar joint exercise, “Angkor Sentinel”, which had been held for the preceding seven years with US forces. The drills follow a two-day visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping to Cambodia in April to deepen ties between the two countries. – AFP

“The exercises are bigger than last year in term of both personnel and equipment,” said RCAF spokesman Thong Solimo. He said a large Chinese amphibious landing ship, the Changbai Shan , docked at Cambodia’s Beijing-renovated Ream Naval Base on Monday with the military equipment for the drills. Cambodian political analyst Ou Virak said “China does want to flex its muscle” and to send a message that “it’s a superpower” through the exercises, dubbed Golden Dragon. “Definitely China is trying to ... grow its influence within the region,” he said. “Beyond just flexing the muscle, it

Cambodian naval base it renovated on Gulf of Thailand to expand its influence in the region. Nearly 900 Chinese military personnel and more than 1,300 Cambodian soldiers are taking part in the drills that will last until May 28, the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces (RCAF) said in a statement. The drills will feature advanced Chinese military hardware, including armoured vehicles, helicopters, warships, reconnaissance drones and robot battle dogs, the statement said. It said the annual exercises were to “develop deeper ties and cooperation” between the two armies.

PHNOM PENH: Cambodia and China yesterday began their largest ever joint military exercises, involving advanced Chinese military hardware including artillery, warships and robot battle dogs. Cambodia has long been a staunch ally of China, receiving billions of dollars in investments, and Washington has voiced concerns that Beijing is using a o Exercise aims to develop deeper ties and cooperation

ABUNDANCE FOR ALL ... Indian tribal farmers taking part in a traditional ritual named ‘Manda Puja’ seeking rain, peace, prosperity, good health and bountiful harvests outside a Shiva temple in Ranchi, Jharkhand, on Tuesday. – AFPPIC

Exiled Myanmar ambassador charged with trespassing LONDON: British police charged Myanmar’s former ambassador to the United Kingdom with trespassing on a diplomatic residence in London that he has refused to leave since being ousted for opposing Myanmar’s 2021 military coup. residence, a mansion surrounded by razor wire and CCTV cameras. Kyaw Zwar Minn has refused to hand it back to the embassy, which he says is now run by representatives of an illegitimate government. interest to allow a junta which the UK has condemned and sanctioned to take over diplomatic property in London, not least because it undermines Britain’s policy of supporting democracy,” he said. temporary head of its London embassy, a move which did not require the consent of the British government under the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations. The European Union yesterday voiced shock at a deadly airstrike on a school, warning the “perpetrators must be held accountable”.

Britain is among several Western countries that have called for democracy to be restored in Myanmar and sanctioned members of Myanmar’s military and some of its business interests. Most democratic nations, including Britain, have not formally recognised the government. But in July 2021, Myanmar’s government appointed a new

London’s police said Kyaw Zwar Minn was charged last week with trespassing on a diplomatic premises. He must appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on May 30. Chris Gunness of rights group Myanmar Accountability Project urged Britain’s attorney general to intervene to stop the case. “It is clearly not in our national

Kyaw Zwar Minn was locked out of his embassy a few months after the February 2021 coup, and was later replaced by the government’s representatives, after calling for the release of Aung San Suu Kyi. Since his protest, praised by the British government at the time, Kyaw Zwar Minn has stayed at the northwest London ambassador’s

The airstrike on Monday killed 20 students and two teachers in the village of Oe Htein Kwin in the Sagaing region. “We are horrified over reports of a massacre in a village school,” said EU foreign affairs spokeswoman Anitta Hipper. – Reuters/AFP