Indonesia Strikes Gold in Paris
“A golden day for Indonesian sports,” exulted The Jakarta Post. On August 8, Veddriq Leonardo won a gold medal for speed sport climbing at the Paris Olympics with a 4.75-second clamber up an indoor...
View ArticleA Gen-Z Revolution in Pakistan Will Have to Wait
After Bangladesh, is Pakistan next? Has Pakistan’s “Monsoon Revolution” moment arrived against the backdrop of a political, economic, and security poly-crisis confronting the country? These questions...
View ArticleThe Chinese Experience in Germany: A Legacy of Struggle and Rebirth
The echoes of a unique cultural history can still be felt through the Chinese community of Hamburg, which has grown significantly in recent years. This contemporary growth is rooted in a century-old...
View ArticleIt’s Past Time to End Chinese Government Impunity for Genocide
A former Chinese diplomat and United Kingdom-based supporter of the brutal regime in Beijing claims that people inside and outside the country must unquestioningly accept Chinese Communist Party...
View ArticleExplaining South Korea’s Railway Ambitions in Central Asia
Earlier this month South Korea and Tajikistan signed an agreement to start a feasibility study for the Jaloliddini Balkhi-Jayhun-Nizhny Panj Railway project. The project is a 51-kilometer railway line...
View ArticleChina-Japan Relations at a Crossroads Amid Strategic Challenges
“One can change friends, but one cannot change neighbors”: This quote from a former Indian prime minister applies to China and Japan as well. Given their geographical proximity, both countries have a...
View ArticleFrom Doha Accord to Doha Process: Why the International Community Fails to...
Since August 2021, the Taliban have been the de facto rulers of Afghanistan after toppling the Western-backed government of President Ashraf Ghani. The Taliban’s takeover of Kabul was also the result...
View ArticleThe Risks of Japan’s Aging Democracy
Kishida Fumio announced on August 14 that he would not run in next month’s election for the president of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), thus drawing to a close his approximately 1,000-day...
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What’s Driving Lithuania’s Challenge to China?
Since 2020, the Baltic states have distanced themselves from the People’s Republic of China (or simply China). They have left the 17 + 1 format for cooperation between China and Central and Eastern...
View ArticleThe Lingering Economic Consequences of Sri Lanka’s Civil War
This year marks 15 years since the end of the Civil War in Sri Lanka. The armed forces carried out an avalanche of atrocities during the conflict: they bombed No Fire Zones, shelled hospitals, fired on...
View ArticleThailand’s Paetongtarn Shinawatra Sworn in as Prime Minister
Paetongtarn Shinawatra, the daughter of divisive former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, was yesterday sworn into office as Thailand’s next prime minister, two days after her election by the Thai...
View ArticleWhy Should I Mourn the Death of Nguyen Phu Trong?
A few weeks ago, shortly after the death of Nguyen Phu Trong on July 19, the late general secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV), I penned a commentary about Trong for Radio Free Asia. In...
View ArticleAt Least 20 Arrested in Cambodia for Protests Against Economic Pact
Cambodian authorities arrested more than 20 political and youth activists over the weekend in a bid to forestall planned protests against an economic agreement with Laos and Vietnam, according to local...
View ArticleA New Bangladesh Is Emerging But It Needs India Too
The overthrow of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina by a sustained student-led protest has plunged Bangladesh into violent chaos. But there is a promise that a more democratic and more economically equal...
View ArticleChina-Japan Relations at a Crossroads Amid Strategic Challenges
“One can change friends, but one cannot change neighbors”: This quote from a former Indian prime minister applies to China and Japan as well. Given their geographical proximity, both countries have a...
View ArticleMyanmar on the Brink: A Population in Desperate Need
18.6 million people. Across Myanmar, 18.6 million people are struggling to meet their basic needs – including access to medical care. The humanitarian situation in Myanmar is rapidly deteriorating,...
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Time for Japan and Germany to Step Up
Early last month, Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio met with German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier and Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Berlin. Both leaders had attended the NATO Summit in Washington,...
View ArticleAlexander Vuving on the Political Legacies of Nguyen Phu Trong
On July 19, Nguyen Phu Trong, the long-serving general secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV), died at the age of 80. His passing appears to have marked the end of an era in Vietnam. During...
View ArticleIndonesia and Australia to Sign Ambitious New Defense Agreement
Australia and Indonesia have agreed to a new defense cooperation agreement that will foster their security cooperation in an increasingly tense and constrained region, Australian Prime Minister Anthony...
View ArticleThe Geopolitics of the AIIB’s $5 Billion Investment Pledge to Vietnam
The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) recently announced it was willing to provide $5 billion in concessional financing for a range of transport infrastructure projects in Vietnam. According...
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