"Demystifying Japan?s resumption of aid to Burma.... Following Depayin, Japan claimed to have suspended ODA to Burma, in response to the bloodbath and subsequent detention of NLD general-secretary Aung San Suu Kyi (who was lucky to escape Depayin alive). Given that Japan has long pursued an engagement policy with Burma, and has been the largest provider of economic aid to the country, a suspension of ODA would presumably have carried a certain weight with Rangoon. Some news articles even speculated that Japan had finally shifted to a tougher policy on Burma similar to that of the United States and the UK. Not so fast! A year and a half later, with Aung San Suu Kyi still under house arrest, regime hardliners firmly in control and the overall dismal political situation in Rangoon unchanged, Tokyo has resumed ODA to Burma. Most notably, in June this year Japan gave the regime human resource development scholarships to the value of about US $4.86 million (532 million yen) and in July a grant of about $3.15 million for an afforestation project in Burma?s central dry zone. In addition, Tokyo has provided nearly 30 smaller ODA grants to non-governmental organizations for various operations in Burma..."