Latest Stories
Gold Plot Auction Heightens Focus on Chinese Investments in Uzbekistan
31 plots in Uzbekistan’s prime gold mining region Navoi went up for auction last month, sparking rumors and discussion about China’s growing business interests in the country.
China Is Winning Its Language War in Tibet
Tibet is one of the most linguistically diverse places in the world. Many of those languages are at risk of extinction.
At What Point Does Australia Say ‘Enough’ to Trump?
Australia has so far been content to bend and gently adjust to the Trump 2.0 whirlwind. It will inevitably have to decide where to draw the line.
Japan’s Struggle to Resolve North Korean Abductions
Japan’s decades-long struggle to resolve the abduction issue faces another setback as families oppose the government’s latest strategy of opening new liaison offices.
The EU Squeezed Between the US and China
Decision-makers in Beijing expect that Trump’s brutal pressure will bring Europe closer to China and, on the face of it, this would make sense. But a full-fledged détente between the EU and China is unlikely.
Zelenskyy at the White House: The Rapid Crumbling of US Leadership Creates a Golden Opportunity for China
Amid a near-complete reversal in U.S. foreign policy, more nations may look to China to fill the role that the United States once played – an unthinkable prospect just a few months ago.
Most Read
A Shot Across the Bow: China Signals New Era of Sea Power in the Southwest Pacific
The live-fire exercises were a demonstration of China’s growing sea power in Australia and New Zealand’s immediate periphery – and meant to normalize the PLA presence there.
How Did Asian Countries Vote in the 2025 UN Resolution Condemning Russia’s Ukraine Invasion?
The U.S. was a notable flip-flop, for the first time siding with Russia in voting against such a resolution. Were there any notable changes in Asia-Pacific voting?
China’s AI Breakthrough Signals a New Era of Tech Innovation
China’s major tech companies are uniquely positioned to capitalize on the shift to real-world applications for AI.
Magazine
To Russia With Waning Love: Changing Migration Dynamics in Central Asia
Russia and Central Asia have been mutually shaped by decades of labor migration, but these long-running ties have begun to fray.
The New Age of Global Trade: Aggressive Neo-Mercantilism
International trade, with the U.S. and China at the forefront, is undergoing a paradigmatic shift away from free trade and toward an aggressive form of neo-mercantilism.
Misun Woo on Women’s Rights in the Asia-Pacific
“We need to ask why there hasn’t been much change to advance women’s human rights and end injustice?”
The New Red Scare: When Fear Becomes a Political Weapon
More than seven decades later, the legacies of the Red Scare have resurfaced in the United States – this time targeting China.
Blogs
China Power
A New World Order
China Is Winning Its Language War in Tibet
Tibet is one of the most linguistically diverse places in the world. Many of those languages are at risk of extinction.
The EU Squeezed Between the US and China
Making Sense of China’s Latest Naval Exercises in the Asia-Pacific
Conversations With Chinese Feminists
Flashpoints
Diplomacy by Other Means
Zelenskyy at the White House: The Rapid Crumbling of US Leadership Creates a Golden Opportunity for China
Amid a near-complete reversal in U.S. foreign policy, more nations may look to China to fill the role that the United States once played – an unthinkable prospect just a few months ago.
Budget Cuts, Insufficient Implementation, and Weak Enforcement Are Undermining Taiwan’s Cyber Defenses
Is There an Axis of Autocracy?
China Coast Guard Vessels Regularly Enter Territorial Waters of Disputed East China Sea Islands
Asia Defense
Militaries of the Asia-Pacific
The Logic of India’s Warship Numbers
In addition to their economic, constabulary, and diplomatic responsibilities, Indian warships are constantly preparing for their primary warfighting role.
The 2 Koreas Share Experience in Foreign Wars
Could US Defense Cuts Affect Timor-Leste?
China’s 6th-Generation Fighter: Potential Game Changer for Air Superiority in Asia?
ASEAN Beat
Insights Into Half a Billion
Shifting Tides in Phnom Penh
Cambodia is seeking to rebalance its foreign relations by pursuing improved relations with the United States. How far will its relationship with China allow it to go?
US, Japan Issue Travel Alerts for Thailand After Uyghur Deportation
Myanmar Junta Chief to Meet with Vladimir Putin on Russia Trip
Thailand Secretly Surrenders At Least 40 Uyghur Asylum Seekers to China
The Pulse
Perspectives on South Asia
India, EU Seek to Emerge as Poles of Stability in an Uncertain World
The European Commission president’s visit to India came amid fraying relations between Europe and the U.S.
Crime Wave Sweeps Post-Hasina Bangladesh
Beyond Terrorism: A Brief History of SAARC’s Failures
Growing Trans-Atlantic Rift on Russia Complicates EU Outreach to India
The Koreas
Divided Peninsula
The Future of South Korea’s Nuclear Exports: The Czech Deal in Focus
Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power's successful bid will see South Korea break into Europe's nuclear energy market for the first time.
Constitutional Court Closes Impeachment Hearings for South Korea’s President
South Korea’s Foreign Minister Holds 1st Meeting With US Secretary of State Rubio
Who Are the Potential Candidates to be South Korea’s Next President?
Tokyo Report
News From Japan
Japan’s Struggle to Resolve North Korean Abductions
Japan’s decades-long struggle to resolve the abduction issue faces another setback as families oppose the government’s latest strategy of opening new liaison offices.
Chinese Buoy Placed in Japan’s Exclusive Economic Zone Removed
Japan’s #MeToo Movement Takes Center Stage With Controversial ‘Black Box Diaries’ Documentary
Will Expo 2025 in Osaka Be a Success?
The Debate
Comment and Opinion
At What Point Does Australia Say ‘Enough’ to Trump?
Australia has so far been content to bend and gently adjust to the Trump 2.0 whirlwind. It will inevitably have to decide where to draw the line.
Without Reform, Bangladesh Risks Backsliding into Repression
How the US Can Make Myanmar a Foreign Policy Success Story
How Australia Can Reinforce Its Commitment to International Humanitarian Law
Crossroads Asia
The New Silk Road
Gold Plot Auction Heightens Focus on Chinese Investments in Uzbekistan
31 plots in Uzbekistan’s prime gold mining region Navoi went up for auction last month, sparking rumors and discussion about China’s growing business interests in the country.
Kazakhstan’s Foreign Agent Law Proposal Could Severely Impact Civil Society and Media Freedom
Trump’s ‘Maximum Pressure’ on Iran Complicates Central Asian Export Routes
Tokayev’s ‘New Kazakhstan’: Rebranding the Old Guard?
Trans-Pacific View
U.S. Policy on Asia
Indo-Pacific Allies May Rethink US Intelligence Sharing After Gabbard, Patel Appointments
Faced with mounting doubts over Washington’s reliability, U.S. allies in the Indo-Pacific may start charting their own course.
Japan and South Korea in the Age of ‘America First’
Trump Can Reverse a Biden Foreign Policy Mistake
What Elon Musk’s Deep Ties to China Mean for Trump’s Foreign Policy
Pacific Money
Economy And Business
Sri Lanka’s 2025 Budget: Balancing IMF Commitments and Domestic Priorities
The 2025 budget – the first under President Anura Kumara Dissanayake – reveals a delicate balancing act between adhering to IMF mandates and addressing domestic economic realities.
Indonesia, Apple Agree Terms For Lifting iPhone Sales Ban: Report
Why Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad Is Going Private
DeepSeek Reflects Both the Success and Failure of US Tech Containment Against China
Oceania
The South Pacific
‘Dark Ads’ Challenge Truth and Democracy in Australia
Political inaction and big tech’s reluctance to protect users leave Australians vulnerable to a murky world of digital misinformation going into the election.
Can ‘Digital Tuvalu’ Survive a Cyberattack?
Australia’s Intelligence Chief Expects More Communal Violence in a Worsening Security Environment
New Zealand’s Kiribati Aid Review Further Opens Door for Chinese Influence
Videos
Asia on Video
What’s Driving Taiwan’s Mass Protests?
Chiang Min-yen, a non-resident fellow at the Taiwan Economic Democracy Union, joins The Diplomat to discuss the concerns over the bill, the China factor, and what comes next.
What’s Behind Vietnam’s Political Upheaval?
The Danger of China’s Digital Silk Road
What Will China’s Shift From Oil Mean for Saudi Arabia and Russia?
Podcasts
Asia Geopolitics
Is the United States Relitigating Its Grand Strategy?
What can be gleaned from the first month of the second Trump administration about the U.S. approach to world affairs?
DeepSeek and the AI Competition
Trump 2.0 in America: Geopolitical Ripples Across Asia and the World
The Biden Administration’s Asia Legacy
Photo Essays
Asia in Pictures
In Photos: Rohingya Refugees’ Trial by Fire
Deadly fires in the refugee camps in Cox's Bazar have become a terrifyingly regular occurrence.