CNN
 — 

For most world leaders, tariff letters from US President Donald Trump mean a big headache. But for one Southeast Asian general, the communique is being spun as welcome recognition of the embattled, isolated and reviled junta he leads.

Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, head of the military that seized power in Myanmar in 2021 after ousting a democratically elected government, said it was he who had the “honor” of receiving of Trump’s letter sent on Monday announcing new tariffs, state media Global New Light of Myanmar reported on Friday.

The letter, which stated the United States would be imposing a new tariff rate of 40 percent on Myanmar’s exports to the US starting August 1, was received with “sincere appreciation,” the newspaper said.

The United States and most Western countries have not recognized the junta as the legitimate government of Myanmar, also known as Burma.

The military’s power grab sparked a catastrophic civil war now in its fifth year, with pro-democracy fighters and ethnic rebel groups battling the military across swaths of the country. The United Nations and other rights groups have accused the military of war crimes as it battles to cling to power.

The US, the United Kingdom and the European Union have all sanctioned the military and sought to limit contact with its representatives on the world stage. Washington and most Western capitals no longer station fully accredited ambassadors in Myanmar, a diplomatic snub the ruling generals have long chafed at.

But this week’s letter was spun as an “encouraging invitation to continue participating in the extraordinary Economy of the United States,” Min Aung Hlaing was quoted as saying, adding a high-level negotiation team could be sent “as quickly as possible to the US to discuss with the relevant authorities,” if needed.

CNN has reached out to the US embassy in Myanmar for details on how the letter was delivered and for comment on whether it signals a change in Washington’s stance on the junta.

Min Aung Hlaing also asked that Washington consider lifting and easing economic sanctions on Myanmar, “as they hinder the shared interests and prosperity of both countries and their peoples,” he was quoted as saying.

The general – who led Myanmar’s military in 2017, when the United States said it committed genocide against the Rohingya minority – also took the chance to heap praise on Trump.

He hailed his “strong leadership in guiding his country towards national prosperity with the spirit of a true patriot, as well as continued efforts to promote peace on the global stage,” the Global New Light said.

Min Aung Hlaing also thanked Trump for “regulating broadcasting agencies and funds, which have sometimes exacerbated the existing conflicts” – an apparent reference to the Trump administration’s funding cuts to US outlets such as Radio Free Asia and Voice of America.

Both outlets have long been popular across Myanmar for their independent reporting, and have become even more vital following the junta’s crackdown on the free press.

Min Aung Hlaing sought to appeal to a longstanding Trump grievance – his long-debunked claims of massive election fraud in the 2020 election won by former President Joe Biden.

“Similar to the challenges the President encountered during the 2020 election of the United States, Myanmar also experienced major electoral fraud and significant irregularities,” he was quoted as saying.

The election he was referring to in Myanmar was won resoundingly by Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi and her National League for Democracy party, which won a second term at the expense of the military’s proxy party.

International observers at the time concluded the election was largely free and fair but the military soon began making unsubstantiated claims of massive fraud. Weeks later, it launched its coup, ending a 10-year experiment with democracy and plunging Myanmar into turmoil.

Suu Kyi has been in military custody since, and is serving a 27-year jail sentence following a closed-door trial that critics say was a sham and designed to remove the popular leader and longtime foe of the military from political life.

Tokyo
CNN
 — 

School principal Yoshiro Tobo is one of the few people left on his remote Japanese island, where the earth is constantly shaking from earthquakes, having chosen to stay behind while his family are on safer ground.

The 52-year-old said he is exhausted and frightened to sleep, as “endless” quakes rumble around Akusekijima in the Tokara Islands, which have endured more than 1,800 earthquakes in the past three weeks.

His colleagues were among 49 evacuees, about 75 per cent of the population, who were evacuated to the mainland by ferry on Sunday after the strongest quake hit on July 3, toppling furniture and making it difficult to stand, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency.

Tobo, however, told CNN how he stayed behind as gatekeeper of the island’s only school, now an evacuation center.

“It has been shaking repeatedly for many days. I’ve been feeling very anxious and scared and it’s difficult to sleep,” he said.

“At their worst, the earthquakes seem endless. I can sense when a big one is coming. Even in my sleep, I can feel it approaching from a distance.”

In an emergency evacuation on Sunday, Tobo opened the school playground to the other 19 remaining islanders and five contractors, providing an open space away from any buildings which could be felled by the tremors. So far, the school remains unscathed.

“I evacuated at around midnight and went back to bed around 1:30 a.m., but I could not sleep enough. Some of the quakes were very strong,” he added.

But he said the responsibility comes with the job.

“As school administrator, I’ve chosen to stay on the island and support the effort by coordinating with government officials and local residents,” said Tobo, whose family live in Kagoshima city, on mainland Kyushu island.

“I stay home at night but I always feel ready to evacuate (to the school) at any moment, even in the middle of the night.”

Takashi Arikawa, an official at Toshima Village Office which manages the region, said the community is “sleep deprived” and “exhausted” from “constant earthquakes that have continued day and night.”

As well as Tobo, the people still on the island include firefighters, farmers, power company workers, one doctor and one nurse.

Tobo’s students resumed lessons on Tuesday via online classes. It follows a period where children were walking to school in helmets as a precaution, according to local media, and the school was closed for two days.

“Until then, some children were still on the island,” the principal said. “They seemed anxious and frightened by the ongoing earthquakes. I did my best to encourage and reassure them.

“We pray that those who remain on the island stay safe and that their homes are spared from damage.”

On neighboring Kodakarajima – which like Akusekijima is one of Tokara’s seven inhabited islands – local authorities confirmed 15 residents have been evacuated and 44 remain along with four contractors.

Kozo Matsuno, the island’s school principal who also stayed behind, said all supermarkets and stores were originally closed and daily necessities are still being delivered by ferry from Kagoshima.

But he expressed optimism, after days of sleepless nights, saying “the intervals between earthquakes have become longer.”

“The earthquakes seem to be subsiding gradually, and I hope this continues,” he told CNN.

Matsuno confirmed that all students are “in good health,” with half attending classes online after evacuating and the other half continuing in person.

The approximately 700 inhabitants of the 12-island archipelago appear well versed in such procedures. One school website shows children sheltering under their desks during a drill in Akusekijima last month.

In addition to the strongest quake on July 3, the region has experienced 128 level-three quakes, according to Japan’s unique, seven-level Shindo intensity scale, categorizing them as strong enough to wake sleeping people.

There have also been at least 39 at level four, felt by most people walking; four at level five, where windows could shatter; and three at upper five, where it’s difficult to move without support.

The region has experienced long periods of tremors before, with one significant event in 2023 bringing 346 recorded quakes.

Officials said there is currently no tsunami risk, but cautioned that the ground remains unstable, according to local media. Residents have been warned of the possibility of collapsing buildings and landslides.

Japan’s government on Saturday warned of more possible strong earthquakes in the area, but urged the public not to believe unfounded comic book predictions of a major disaster striking the country on July 5.

This stems from rumors inspired by the manga “The Future I Saw,” which warns of a major disaster in March 2011, a date which turned out to coincide with the earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan’s northern Tohoku region that month, which caused the Fukushima nuclear disaster.

The “complete version,” released in 2021, claims that the next big earthquake will hit this July.

Earthquakes are common in Japan, which accounts for about one-fifth of the world’s tremors of magnitude 6 or greater.

The country sits on the so-called Ring of Fire, home to 75 per cent of the world’s active volcanoes, where roughly 90 per cent of all earthquakes occur. Stretching almost 25,000 miles, the horseshoe-shaped Ring of Fire encircles most of the Pacific Ocean.

This is where many tectonic plates meet and move against each other, causing friction that releases energy and creates the shaking that is unleashed during an earthquake.

Hanako Montgomery contributed to this report.

CNN
 — 

India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation bureau has released a preliminary report on the Air India flight that crashed in June, pointing to a possible issue with the engine fuel supply.

The London-bound plane had barely left the runway at Ahmedabad airport before it careened back to earth. Everyone on board was killed, except for one passenger.

According to the report obtained by CNN, the fuel control switches in the cockpit of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner had been flipped, resulting in engine problems.

Investigators were able to get data out of the black boxes, including 49 hours of flight data and two hours of cockpit audio, including the crash.

The aircraft had reached an airspeed of 180 knots when both engines’ fuel cutoff switches were “transitioned from RUN to CUTOFF position one after another with a time gap of 01 sec,” according to the report.

“In the cockpit voice recording, one of the pilots is heard asking the other why did he cutoff. The other pilot responded that he did not do so,” the report reads.

Fuel was cutoff to the engines, according to the report.

Airport footage shows the Ram Air Turbine, an emergency power source on an aircraft, deployed during the plane’s initial climb after take-off, the report said. The plane started to lose altitude before crossing the airport perimeter wall.

Shortly after, the switches were reversed back to where they should have been, and the engines were in the process of powering back up when the crash happened.

Investigators also noted much of the aircraft was found in normal condition. The plane’s fuel was tested and found to be of satisfactory quality and no significant bird activity is observed in the vicinity of the flight path, according to the report.

“When fuel control switches are moved from CUTOFF to RUN while the aircraft is inflight, each engines full authority dual engine control automatically manages a relight and thrust recovery sequence of ignition and fuel introduction,” the report states.

Seconds after the engines attempted to relight, one pilot called out, “MAYDAY MAYDAY MAYDAY.” The controller called out for the plane’s callsign, but didn’t get a response and watched the plane crash in the distance.

The captain of the flight was a 56-year-old male who flew over 15,000 hours in his career. The first officer was a 32-year old male with over 3,400 flying hours.

The take-off weight for the plane was found to be within allowable limits, and there were no “Dangerous Goods” on the aircraft. Investigators found the flaps on the wings of the plane were set in the 5-degree position, which is correct for takeoff, and the landing gear lever was in the down position.

The left engine was installed on the plane on March 26 and the right hand was installed on May 1, the report said.

In addition to those on board, a number of people on the ground were killed when the plane crashed into the BJ Medical College and Hospital hostel.

The Air India flight, AI171, took off from Ahmedabad’s Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport in India’s western state of Gujarat on June 12. The Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner was headed to London Gatwick, and scheduled to land at 6:25 p.m. local time (1:25 p.m. ET).

Air India had said 242 passengers and crew members were on board. That included 169 Indian nationals, 53 Britons, seven Portuguese and one Canadian.

This story has been updated with additional developments.