YANGON: China’s special envoy met Myanmar’s junta chief for talks on “peace and stability” along their shared border, Myanmar state media reported Friday, days after ethnic rebels seized a regional military command.
Myanmar’s northern Shan state has been the site of repeated clashes since late June after ethnic rebel groups renewed an offensive against the military along a vital trade highway to China.
Junta chief Min Aung Hlaing discussed “internal peace processes in Myanmar, peace and stability measures in the border region” with China’s Deng Xijun in the capital Naypyidaw on Thursday, according to the Global New Light of Myanmar.
The senior general “explained the implementation of objectives and a five-point roadmap in order to ensure peace, stability,” the state-run newspaper said.
AFP has contacted China’s embassy in Yangon for comment.
China is a major ally and arms supplier to the junta, but analysts say it also maintains ties with armed ethnic groups in Myanmar that hold territory near its border.
Last week, an alliance of ethnic rebel groups captured the military’s northeastern command in the town of Lashio, home to about 150,000 people.
The capture of the regional command — the first by opponents of the junta since the military’s 2021 coup — has sparked rare public criticism of the top generals by its supporters.
On Monday, Min Aung Hlaing said the alliance was receiving weapons, including drones and short-range missiles, from “foreign” sources that he did not identify.
Dozens of civilians have been killed or wounded in the recent fighting, according to the junta and local rescue groups.
Myanmar’s borderlands are home to myriad ethnic armed groups who have battled the military since independence from Britain in 1948 for autonomy and control of lucrative resources.
Some have given shelter and training to newer “People’s Defense Forces” that have sprung up to battle the military after its ouster of Aung San Suu Kyi’s government in a 2021 coup.
China envoy, Myanmar junta chief meet on border clashes
https://arab.news/nw8d8
China envoy, Myanmar junta chief meet on border clashes
- Myanmar’s northern Shan state has been the site of repeated clashes since late June
- Ethnic rebel groups renewed an offensive against the military along a vital trade highway to China
Indonesia sets rules limiting use of AI for schoolchildren
- Indonesian children spend about 7.5 hours daily on tablets, smartphones
- Gen Zs make up the majority of AI users in the country of 280m people
JAKARTA: The Indonesian government introduced on Thursday a new policy regulating the use of digital technology in education, limiting access to artificial intelligence for students.
Generation Alphas and Gen Zs make up almost half of Indonesia’s online population, which reached nearly 230 million people in 2025, according to a survey conducted by the Association of Indonesian Internet Service Providers.
As Indonesian children clock around 7.5 hours of daily screen time, the joint ministerial decree seeks to boost the benefits of digital technology and AI in formal and informal educational institutions, while also protecting the youth from risks in digital spaces.
“There are a lot of factors but the number of teenagers with mental health issues are high and continue to increase, and one of the suspected triggers — that have been proven academically — is the uncontrolled, unmitigated use of digital technology,” said Pratikno, Indonesia’s Coordinating Minister for Human Development and Cultural Affairs.
“The effects on education are also concerning, such as how it weakens brain activity due to dependence on digital technology tools and reduces critical thinking and cognitive and reflective abilities. This is what we have to regulate.”
Among Indonesia’s 280 million population, around a quarter of internet users are already using AI, with Gen Zs making up about 43 percent of that segment.
The joint decree, which Pratikno described as “comprehensive” and encompasses early childhood education to higher education, was signed in Jakarta by seven ministers, including Higher Education, Science and Technology Minister Brian Yuliarto and Primary and Secondary Education Minister Abdul Mu’ti.
“This decree seeks to ensure that our children are not controlled by technology but become the masters of technology for good, that is our goal. (It prioritizes) digital wellness, (for tech to be used) wisely and intelligently,” Pratikno said.
The policy is important to support young Indonesians, many of whom are internet users from adolescence, said Communication and Digital Affairs Minister Meutya Hafid, who also signed the ministerial decree.
“Indonesia has a significant number of children using the internet. Therefore, we must ensure that they are not only a target market for the technology industry, but also able to utilize technology according to their readiness,” she said.
“Every kind of technological advance has to consider the readiness of its users, especially children.”
