Tsai Ing-wen 2.0

The election results or trade deals of yesterday often have different meanings today.

Tsai’s first term had its successes and failures, yet she still won a historic re-election victory. What can she deliver in her second term?

Sinophobia in Central Asia is real. But does that translate into a threat to China’s lasting presence in the region?

Narendra Modi’s second term has coincided with the implementation of his party’s Hindu nationalist agenda. What is driving this?

Untangling the political machinations that collapsed the Alliance of Hope from within.

Chinese corruption actually fuels growth – but at a steep cost.

The pandemic revealed fissures that were always present at the grassroots level of China-Russia relations.

How many Chinese officials are on international social media platforms, like Twitter, and how active are they?

COVID-19 has increased calls for China to forgive old loans. Time to sort out the facts and the fiction about how China manages debt in troubled times.

The latest Twitter war, centering on a Thai idol named Bright, reveals a curious trend in Chinese nationalism.

The Chinese state has used the coronavirus pandemic to deepen its advance into the private and devotional lives of Tibetans.

Amid the COVID-19 crisis, Seoul is tasked with chairing the middle power grouping to global significance.

Japan is scrambling to make up for early mistakes in its COVID-19 response. 

The North’s stonewalling of South Korean assistance is more proof that Kim Jong Un has little interest in reconciliation.

The Democratic Party wins unilateral control of the National Assembly, while conservatives and minor parties recede.

As stay-at-home appeals start to take effect in Japan, alarms have been raised over a growing worldwide trend in domestic abuse cases.

Millions of South Asian blue collar migrant workers are stranded as a pandemic locks down their ability to travel – or send money – home.

“The dead don’t haunt me as much as missing do,” Sajid Hussain once told me. Now he’s among the missing himself.

The Islamic State is exploiting the COVID–19 pandemic.

In August 2019, Jammu and Kashmir lost its autonomous status. How much power has it retained?

The mega-project was put on hold under the previous government. If it isn’t kickstarted soon, Kabul city could be left uninhabitable.

Both sides are attempting to recalibrate their ties as they commemorate the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations. 

The Philippines expresses concern and solidarity with Vietnam over a fishing row with China in the South China Sea. 

Across Southeast Asia, there’s a worrying rush to sacrifice free speech in the name of nebulous benefits amid a crisis.

A Thai born in 1990 has now experienced 3 economic crises, 2 military coups, and countless constitutional changes. Small wonder discontent is boiling over.

A review of Vietnam’s response to COVID-19 and its implications.

Central Asia’s economies are especially vulnerable to the long-term impacts of the coronavirus pandemic.

President Shavkat Mirziyoyev has been ringing his neighbors to coordinate and dispatching aid to Afghanistan.

Activists stress that there is a pathway beyond the pledge, but it’s a long road to full reform of the Uzbek cotton sector.

With his election as chair of the Tajik parliament’s upper house, Rustam Emomali is now officially second-in-line to the presidency.

A drop in crude oil prices and the emergence of cases of COVID-19 at the Tengiz field are poised to slash investment and hammer employment.

The Australian and New Zealand labor markets are significant for Pacific Island states. COVID-19 is complicating access.

It is clear that right-wing terrorism – much like its Islamist counterpart – has now become a transnational phenomenon.

The Solomon Islands is considering a controversial investment for a passport scheme; meanwhile Vanuatu is considering scrapping its own version.

Advantageous geography, a unified response, and public trust in institutions have bolstered Australia’s fight against the coronavirus.

Sustained tensions over cost-sharing are slowly chipping away at the sinews of the U.S.-South Korea alliance. Washington remains opposed to compromise.

A closer look at how both sides may look to advance collaboration amid the global pandemic.

What is the U.S. doing to help Asian countries amid the pandemic and what does that mean for U.S.-China strategic competition?

Beijing has unveiled a new array of advanced unmanned systems, designed for the air and the sea. What will they contribute to the modern battlespace?

China’s military and paramilitary forces have been employing lasers with increasing frequency since at least 2018.

China’s moves in the region, despite the pandemic, are only likely to generate fear and inspire greater cooperation with Washington.  

Should the U.S. Navy downsize its carrier force?

While the caste system remains very powerful in India, it is important to notice its changing nature.

The country’s top baseball and basketball leagues are holding games without fans, a sign of its success in controlling the spread of the coronavirus.

China has unofficially banned the popular video game to continue to suppress online forms of protest amid COVID-19 isolation.