Latest Stories
Ex-Thai PM Thaksin Expected Back in Thailand for Crucial Court Verdict
Thaksin Shinawatra left the country abruptly for Dubai last week, shortly before a scheduled prime ministerial vote in parliament.
Indonesia’s Unrest Revives Fears Over Military’s Expanding Role
The current political upheaval has raised concerns that the military’s role in civic life will expand further under the pretext of restoring order.
Anutin Sworn in as Thai Prime Minister, Unveils First Cabinet Picks
The 58-year-old, who was elected by the Thai parliament last week, has promised that his government will “work tirelessly."
President Lai Ching-te’s Catch-22
Taiwan’s president is caught between domestic expectations and external pressures, with every move risking either political loss at home or strategic vulnerability abroad.
China-Mongolia-Russia Agreement on Power of Siberia 2 Could Reroute Energy Trade
An agreement on the long-stalled pipeline was the major outcome of the latest China-Mongolia-Russia trilateral summit.
Evergrande’s Delisting Exposes China’s Slow Bankruptcy Trap
Beijing has protected homebuyers and stability by stretching out failures. Now it needs a rules-based exit system that finishes homes faster and frees capital for growth.
Most Read
The US Is Rethinking the India-Pakistan Dynamic
Washington’s South Asia strategy is shifting, and it is this recalibration – rather than tariffs – that threatens to inject lasting volatility into ties with New Delhi.
What Did Central Asia Get Out of the SCO?
For Central Asia, the SCO has become a venue for deepening relations with China and managing relations with Russia.
What the China Coast Guard-PLAN Ship Collision Reveals About China’s Military Capabilities
This incident not only illustrates the continued tensions in the South China Sea but also provides an opportunity to evaluate China’s maritime capabilities.
Magazine
Can ASEAN Truly Remain Neutral Between the US and China?
Malaysia’s approach as chair epitomizes the bloc’s difficult balancing act.
Kabul Will Never Be the Same Again
24 years after the U.S. invasion, and four years after the Taliban’s triumphant return to power, the question lingers: Were the war’s many sacrifices worth anything?
Memory as Destiny: China and East Asia 80 Years After World War II
History in East Asia is never just history. It is weaponized, re-scripted, and deeply entangled in present-day struggles for legitimacy, identity, and power.
Napon Jatusripitak on How the Cambodia-Thailand Tensions Spiraled Into Conflict
“These flashpoints alone cannot account for the speed or scale of the escalation, or the intensity of the nationalist fervor it has unleashed.”
Blogs
China Power
A New World Order
President Lai Ching-te’s Catch-22
Taiwan’s president is caught between domestic expectations and external pressures, with every move risking either political loss at home or strategic vulnerability abroad.
China’s Post-2018 Economic Statecraft: Sanctions, Countersanctions, and Export Controls
China’s Neighborhood Diplomacy Comes of Age in Southeast Asia
A ‘Loser’s Nation’ and the Abandoned Chinese Dream
Flashpoints
Diplomacy by Other Means
The Triumvirate’s Triple Win: What Xi, Putin, and Kim Each Gained in Beijing
While China’s, North Korea’s, and Russia’s motivations differ, their coordination increasingly resembles a bloc structure.
China-India: Transactional Thaw or Structured Détente?
FCC Gives the US a Boost in Subsea Cable Competition With China
The Geopolitical Message of China’s Military Parade
Asia Defense
Militaries of the Asia-Pacific
India’s Silent Drone Revolution
A silent, indigenous, drone revolution is underway in India. It will reduce New Delhi’s reliance on foreign companies.
Deciphering the Military Signals of China’s Victory Day Parade
What Were the Weapons on Display in China’s Military Parade?
What the China Coast Guard-PLAN Ship Collision Reveals About China’s Military Capabilities
ASEAN Beat
Insights Into Half a Billion
Ex-Thai PM Thaksin Expected Back in Thailand for Crucial Court Verdict
Thaksin Shinawatra left the country abruptly for Dubai last week, shortly before a scheduled prime ministerial vote in parliament.
Indonesia’s Unrest Revives Fears Over Military’s Expanding Role
Anutin Sworn in as Thai Prime Minister, Unveils First Cabinet Picks
Thailand’s Parliament Elects Anutin Charnvirakul as Next Prime Minister
The Pulse
Perspectives on South Asia
India, Japan Bolster Cooperation Amid China-US Rivalry
Recent India-Japan bilateral efforts to bolster tech and economic security draw on bilateral synergies and challenges posed by the China-U.S. rivalry.
After Devastating Earthquake, Afghanistan Is Still Caught in the Sanctions Trap
Bangladesh Erases Mujibur Rahman’s Legacy
Indus Waters Treaty: From Cooperative Vision to Calculated Confrontation
The Koreas
Divided Peninsula
The Dark Side of China-North Korea Cooperation: Forced Labor
The Kim-Xi bonhomie shouldn’t overshadow the suffering of North Korea’s “state-dispatched workers” to China.
Kim Jong Un Attends China’s Military Parade
PPP’s New Leader Vows to ‘Bring Down’ the Lee Jae-myung Administration
North Korea’s Processed Goods Push Meets China’s Cold Market Reality
Tokyo Report
News From Japan
Prince Hisahito and Japan’s Imperial Future
Hisahito’s position as the only eligible male heir to the Chrysanthemum Throne has generated intense interest in his life – and public debate about Japan’s male-only imperial succession.
How Japan Won the Bid to Supply Australia’s Next-Generation Frigate
Court Rulings and Public Opinion on Same-Sex Marriage in Japan
A New Beginning for Japan-South Korea Relations – Again
The Debate
Comment and Opinion
No, China’s Isn’t Leading an Anti-West Bloc
Two meetings that didn't happen alongside the recent SCO summit and military parade show Beijing is not planning to confront the West.
China’s Parade of Power
Why Bangladesh’s Soldiers Who Gunned Down Civilians Should Be Tried by Civilian Courts
BIGD’s Pulse Survey Was About Voicing Citizens’ Hopes and Concerns, Not Predicting the Election Outcome
Crossroads Asia
The New Silk Road
China-Mongolia-Russia Agreement on Power of Siberia 2 Could Reroute Energy Trade
An agreement on the long-stalled pipeline was the major outcome of the latest China-Mongolia-Russia trilateral summit.
Mongolia Exits SCO Observer Status, Draws Closer to China and Russia
Will the Kyrgyz Parliament Dissolve Itself?
Date Set for Uzbekistan to Sign Enhance Partnership Agreement With the European Union
Trans-Pacific View
U.S. Policy on Asia
India-US Relations in the Shadow of American Decline
With the sun setting on the U.S. empire and decline in Indo-U.S. ties, India is leveraging the multipolarity of the international system to diversify its relations, increase trade with Russia and reset relations with China.
The US Is Rethinking the India-Pakistan Dynamic
The Blind Spots of Trump 2.0’s Indo-Pacific Strategy
Why Washington Can’t Ignore Bangladesh
Pacific Money
Economy And Business
Evergrande’s Delisting Exposes China’s Slow Bankruptcy Trap
Beijing has protected homebuyers and stability by stretching out failures. Now it needs a rules-based exit system that finishes homes faster and frees capital for growth.
US Tariffs Turn the Screws on India’s Indigenous Industries
US Policy Shift Complicates South Korean Semiconductor Operations in China
What Makes Digital Banks in Southeast Asia Successful?
Oceania
The South Pacific
Australia’s Real Immigration Problem
Australia needs to think seriously about how to persuade those suspicious of immigration that it is an essential tool to bolster the national interest.
What to Make of the Australian Defense Minister’s ‘Happenstance Encounter’ at the Pentagon
Porepunkah Shooting Highlights Threat ‘Sovereign Citizens’ Pose to Australia
Australia Expels Iran’s Ambassador Over Antisemitic Attacks
Videos
Asia on Video
Podcasts
Asia Geopolitics
What Actually Mattered at China’s Big Military Parade?
It was a big week for China, hosting an SCO Summit in Tianjin and then a massive military parade in Beijing. The world was watching closely.
South Korea’s Lee Hits the Road to Japan and the United States
Geopolitical Ripple Effects: US-Russia, China-India, and More
Reviewing Thailand and Cambodia’s July 2025 Border Skirmish
Photo Essays
Asia in Pictures
Self-Help Groups Are Transforming Women’s Lives in India
For decades, men ruled the farms in Bihar. Now, it’s women who are reshaping the agricultural economy.