Latest Stories
Why Did Japan Cut Funding to the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women?
Japan’s decision to end it contribution to the U.N.'s top gender equality body could hardly come at a worse time, both diplomatically and symbolically.
How the US Aid Freeze Shook up the Geopolitics of Nepal’s Power Trade
The Trump administration froze a $500 million grant to Nepal, changing the calculus of the China-India-U.S. tug of war over its power sector.
As Impeachment Verdict Nears, Yoon’s Public Support Remains Dismal
A recent poll found Yoon's approval rating has dipped even below the immediate post-martial law period – contrasting with other polls showing a pro-Yoon bounce.
Noshki Bus Attack: The Baloch Liberation Army’s Evolving Suicide Attack Strategy
Days after a major train hijacking, the BLA targeted buses carrying Pakistani security forces. Both attacks highlight the BLA's new strategy of combining suicide attacks with conventional guerrilla warfare.
China’s 2 Sessions: Slow Growth Collides With Tech Supremacy
China faces a paradox: structural challenges and slowing growth associated with the old economy, and a high-tech, globally competitive industrial sector in the new economy.
In the Face of Disengagement and Distrust: Civics Education in Australia Is Critical
A new report outlines the importance of strengthening civics education in Australia.
Most Read
Jaffar Express Hijacking Exposes Pakistan’s Failing Strategy in Balochistan
The hijacking of the Jaffar Express signals that the conflict in Balochistan is reaching a dangerous new phase.
The South China Sea: Making the Philippines-US Alliance Work Under Trump 2.0
The most crucial question remains: How to deter China?
Is the United States Becoming a Hollow Maritime Power?
U.S. maritime power increasingly risks projecting strength without the institutional agility to sustain it.
Magazine
Pakistan Under Shehbaz Sharif: The State of the Nation
With domestic politics gravely polarized, security increasingly fragile, and the economy barely stable, there is little sign of an end to Pakistan’s chronic dysfunction.
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?”
Blogs
China Power
A New World Order
China’s 2 Sessions: Slow Growth Collides With Tech Supremacy
China faces a paradox: structural challenges and slowing growth associated with the old economy, and a high-tech, globally competitive industrial sector in the new economy.
China’s Dwindling Marriage Rate Is Fueling Demand for Brides Trafficked From Abroad
Taiwan Looks to Crack Down on China’s Influence and Espionage Activities
The Lasting Legacy of Taiwan’s 1990 Wild Lily Movement
Flashpoints
Diplomacy by Other Means
Noshki Bus Attack: The Baloch Liberation Army’s Evolving Suicide Attack Strategy
Days after a major train hijacking, the BLA targeted buses carrying Pakistani security forces. Both attacks highlight the BLA's new strategy of combining suicide attacks with conventional guerrilla warfare.
Afghanistan, Pakistan Point Fingers Over Islamic State Presence
Quantum: A New Frontier of China-US Competition
Safeguarding Climate Action Amid Political Transitions in Asia
Asia Defense
Militaries of the Asia-Pacific
Uncertainty and Strategic Shifts in Taiwan-US Defense Cooperation Under Trump 2.0
U.S. military aid and strategic support for Taiwan are being reshaped. What will that mean for arms sales, military assistance, and strategic commitments?
Rebuilding Civil-Military Trust in South Korea
Beyond a Budget Boost: Modernizing Taiwan’s Defense
As ROK-US Drill Began, North Korea Fired Ballistic Missiles
ASEAN Beat
Insights Into Half a Billion
Cambodia’s Hun Sen, Myanmar Junta Celebrate Closure of US-Funded Media Outlets
The U.S.-funded broadcasters Radio Free Asia and Voice of America have long been a thorn in the side of the region's repressive governments.
Cambodia Willing to Use Force to Defend Sovereignty Over Temple, PM Says
Tensions Rising in the Philippines After Former President Duterte’s ICC Arrest
What Southeast Asian Countries Can Learn from Vietnam’s History of Negotiating Territorial Disputes with China
The Pulse
Perspectives on South Asia
How the US Aid Freeze Shook up the Geopolitics of Nepal’s Power Trade
The Trump administration froze a $500 million grant to Nepal, changing the calculus of the China-India-U.S. tug of war over its power sector.
With Luxon Visit, India-New Zealand Ties Scale New Heights
A Bleak Future for Rohingya Refugees
India Reiterates Mauritius’ Centrality to Its Indian Ocean Region Strategy
The Koreas
Divided Peninsula
As Impeachment Verdict Nears, Yoon’s Public Support Remains Dismal
A recent poll found Yoon's approval rating has dipped even below the immediate post-martial law period – contrasting with other polls showing a pro-Yoon bounce.
Ahead of South Korea’s Impeachment Verdict, Partisan Division Is Worsening
South Korea’s Imperial Presidency
Yoon’s Martial Law Declaration Was Bad. What He Did Next May Have Been Worse.
Tokyo Report
News From Japan
Why Did Japan Cut Funding to the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women?
Japan’s decision to end it contribution to the U.N.'s top gender equality body could hardly come at a worse time, both diplomatically and symbolically.
Japan Appoints First Chief of New Joint Operations Command
At Fukushima Daiichi, Japan’s Unprecedented Nuclear Cleanup Continues
Japan’s Catch-22 Situation Over US-Ukraine Row
The Debate
Comment and Opinion
India Needs to De-weaponize Misinformation
Indian law needs to fix the meaning of fake news and misinformation and needs to be tied to the public interest rather than to the interest of the state.
Argentina’s President Milei Ignores Asia
Myanmar’s Decentralized Resistance Is Too Resilient and Flexible to Crush
The US Is Failing Uyghurs – and Letting China Dominate American Allies
Crossroads Asia
The New Silk Road
Cancellation of RFE/RL’s Grant Called ‘Illegal’ and a ‘Gift’ to US Adversaries
RFE/RL leadership has pushed back on the decision by its parent organization, the U.S. Agency for Global Media, to cancel its grants, calling the move outright "illegal."
Uzbekistan, Pakistan Expanding Trade Amid Connectivity Challenges
An Unlikely Democracy: The Legacy of Mongolia’s 1990 Revolution
Pickers and Clusters: A Complex Array of Issues Confronts Uzbekistan’s Evolving Cotton Industry
Trans-Pacific View
U.S. Policy on Asia
Waste Not, Want Not: The Need for US Soft Power in the Indo-Pacific
The U.S. cannot sustain its influence or meet its objectives in the Indo-Pacific with only hard power or material inducements to other states.
Lawyer Extradited From Kyrgyzstan to California to Face Visa Fraud Charges
Does Trump’s Public Praise for Pakistan Signal a Change in US Foreign Policy toward Islamabad?
Asian Allies on Edge: Japan and South Korea Brace for Uncertainty in Trump’s Second Term
Pacific Money
Economy And Business
The Scandal at Indonesia’s State-Owned Energy Firm Pertamina, Explained
Five oil executives have been arrested for importing fuel at inflated prices. What explains the timing?
How US Companies in China Can Survive
AI, Influence, and Power: How China is Reshaping Central Europe’s Digital Future
Singapore’s Budget 2025, Explained
Oceania
The South Pacific
In the Face of Disengagement and Distrust: Civics Education in Australia Is Critical
A new report outlines the importance of strengthening civics education in Australia.
Half-truths and Lies: An Online Day in Australia
America or Europe? Why Trump’s Ukraine U-turn Is a Fork in the Road for New Zealand
Set Adrift: The Australian Political Class and the US Alliance under Trump 2.0
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
Duterte in The Hague: The Philippines and the Geopolitics of International Law
What does Rodrigo Duterte's arrest mean for the Philippines and international law?
Is the United States Relitigating Its Grand Strategy?
DeepSeek and the AI Competition
Trump 2.0 in America: Geopolitical Ripples Across Asia and the World
Photo Essays
Asia in Pictures
The Untold Stories of Peshawar’s Gemstone Market at Namak Mandi
Pakistan’s largest and most important gemstone and mineral market is deeply intertwined with the region’s borders, conflict, and undocumented economies.