Thailand

BANGKOK, Nov. 18 (Xinhua) -- Thai Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Don Pramudwinai on Thursday unveiled a new logo for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) group in 2022, further emphasizing the theme of "Open. Connect. Balance."

Attending the launching event together with Prime Minister's Office Minister Anucha Nakasai, Don said that the new logo, with the shape of a woven bamboo basket, symbolizes Thailand's traditional agricultural trade.

BANGKOK (AP) — American journalist Danny Fenster, who was recently sentenced to 11 years of hard labor after spending nearly six months in jail in military-ruled Myanmar, was freed and on his way home Monday, a former U.S. diplomat who helped negotiate the release said.

BANGKOK (AP) — A court in military-ruled Myanmar on Friday sentenced detained U.S. journalist Danny Fenster to 11 years in prison after finding him guilty on several charges, including incitement for allegedly spreading false or inflammatory information.

Fenster, the managing editor of the online magazine Frontier Myanmar, was also found guilty of contacting illegal organizations and violating visa regulations, lawyer Than Zaw Aung said. He was sentenced to the maximum term on each charge.

BANGKOK, Nov 10 (Reuters) - A Thai court ruled on Wednesday that three anti-government activists who had called for reform of the country's powerful monarchy had violated the constitution by making what it called a veiled attempt to overthrow the institution.

The Constitutional Court, ruling in a case brought by a royalist lawyer, said a controversial 10-point call for reforms of the institution by three student protest leaders in August last year was designed to topple the monarchy.

BANGKOK (AP) — Former U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Bill Richardson acknowledges criticism of his humanitarian visit to Myanmar, but says he feels his trip was constructive.

Richardson, also a former governor of New Mexico, is the highest-profile American to visit the Southeast Asian nation since its military seized power in February from the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi. He traveled there last week with three colleagues, his office said, to discuss delivery of COVID-19 vaccines, medical supplies and other public health needs.

BANGKOK, Nov 3 (NNN-Bernama) — Thailand is hoping to get at least 700,000 visitors to the kingdom this year via various entry schemes and initiatives to revive the tourism sector and spur the economic recovery.

In its latest move, which started on Monday, Thailand welcomes fully vaccinated visitors from 63 countries and territories via “Test & Go” entry scheme, where visitors will skip mandatory quarantine.

BANGKOK/SYDNEY, Nov 1 (Reuters) - Thailand, Australia and Israel eased international border restrictions significantly on Monday for the first time in 18 months, offering a broad test of demand for travel worldwide amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The relaxation contrasts with tightening lockdowns elsewhere, notably in eastern Europe where infections have hit record numbers, and in parts of China, which has taken a zero-tolerance approach to COVID-19 despite relatively few cases.

BANGKOK, Oct 27 (Reuters) - Thailand held a dry-run on Wednesday for its long-awaited, quarantine-free reopening to vaccinated travellers, as the country rushes to reboot an industry battered by an 18-month hiatus in international tourism.

At Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi airport, Thailand's main gateway, airport staff and health and immigration officials ran a simulation of the arrival of a plane full of visitors, to test out electronic screening measures.

BANGKOK, Oct. 25 (Xinhua) -- When leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and their dialogue partners meet virtually this week, high on the agenda will be the joint efforts for a post-pandemic recovery as countries recently began to reopen their economies and borders following the receding of the COVID-19 outbreak.

BANGKOK, Oct 9 (NNN-Bernama) — The Special Advisory Council for Myanmar (SAC-M) wants United Nations (UN) to speed up actions to address issues in Myanmar, as military leader Min Aung Hlaing’s violent assault on the people since February has driven the country into a state of acute crisis.

“During this unprecedented nationwide emergency, the people of Myanmar feel they have been abandoned by the UN. The UN is in danger of repeating its past mistakes in Myanmar,” SAC-M said in a statement here on Saturday.