By Simone Galimberti* KATHMANDU, Nepal | 20 December 2024 (IDN) — What should we expect from the Malaysia’s Chairmanship of ASEAN in 2025? After several years of hibernation in which the regional bloc did not certainly sparkle in terms of vitality and creativity, will Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim of Malaysia be able to resuscitate an […]
Was South Korea’s Coup an Attempt to Restart the Korean War?
By Ju-Hyun Park* SEOUL | 16 December 2024 (IDN) — As South Korea’s political crisis continues following President Yoon’s failed attempt to declare martial law on December 3, new details are emerging in the country’s legislature that suggest the full scope of Yoon’s coup plot may have included plans to trigger a “limited war” with […]
Asia-Pacific: Leaving No one Behind Amid Climate Change
By Selahattin Selsah Pasali* BANGKOK, Thailand | 14 December 2024 (IDN) — Over four in five people in Asia and the Pacific face multi-hazard risks associated with slow or sudden onset climate events. However, the degree of exposure is by no means uniform across individuals and households and diversity prevails in vulnerability to and capacity […]
The First Element of a North Korean Nuclear Proliferation Network
By Robert Kelley* VIENNA | 13 December 2024 (IDN) — On the night of 6 September 2007 Israeli jets bombed a building in Northen Syria. The building was alleged to be a nuclear reactor under construction to support a nuclear weapons program. The reactor was reported to be a copy of the small plutonium production […]
China Completes 3,000-Kilometre Desert Green Belt
By Niu Yuhan* LONDON | 10 December 2024 (IDN) — Workers have planted the final 100 metres of trees along the southern edge of the Taklamakan Desert, completing a 3,046-kilometre “green belt” encircling China’s largest desert, according to Xinhua. The Taklamakan Desert, covering an area of 337,600 square kilometres—roughly the size of Finland—is the second-largest […]
Two Words Stick as Nepal PM Goes to China for Connectivity Assistance
By Kalinga Seneviratne Bangkok | 7 December 2024 (IDN) — Breaking with tradition, Nepal’s recently re-elected Prime Minister Sharma Oli, a Communist politician, visited China from 2 to 5 December in a bid to add new momentum to growing trends in the landlocked Himalayan nation to diversify its connectivity to the outside world via railways […]
Sustainable Transport Key to Achieving Asia-Pacific Region’s Development Ambitions
By Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana* BANGKOK, Thailand | 26 November 2024 (IDN) — Across the Asia-Pacific region, especially in urban centres, electric cars and buses are increasingly replacing gasoline-powered ones as a means of transportation. Aided by the ubiquity of smart devices, smart mobility and other transport innovations are significantly reshaping everyday life through ride-sharing apps, […]
South Korea: Best Off Balancing Deterrence and Diplomacy with The North
By Rachel Minyong Lee* WASHINGTON. D:C. | 17 November 2024 (IDN) — Unification is a perennial topic of interest among Korea watchers, but it has been particularly popular — and confusing — in recent months, with North and South Korea each sending diametrically opposed signals. South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol delivered a rare speech dedicated to unification […]
Sri Lanka: Daunting Foreign Policy Options for a New Administration — Part 3
Former Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka to the United Nations, and more recently, Ambassador to the People’s Republic of China (PRC). Read Part 2 here: https://indepthnews.colo.ba.be/sri-lanka-daunting-foreign-policy-options-for-a-new-administration-part-2/ COLOMBO, Sri Lanka | 9 November 2024 (IDN) — In the nineteenth century, the GREAT GAME was played by two global powers among the soaring peaks and stunning valleys […]
An Asian Perspective of the Trump Victory at the US Presidential Election
From the Asia Society in New York NEW YORK | 8 November 2024 (IDN) — Asia Society Policy Institute experts comment on the news that Donald Trump has won the 2024 U.S. election and what it means for Asia. Daniel Russel – Vice President, International Security and Diplomacy The uncertainty of the election now gives […]