Four priority BRI projects in Myanmar promise to make China a balance-of-power tilting Indian Ocean force by Bertil Lintner If the four most important of 33 agreements Xi signed with his Myanmar […]
Myanmar a perfect fit on China’s Belt and Road
Location, location, location: Why Russian LNG can beat competition from US & Australia?
Russia’s geographical position makes its exports of liquefied natural gas (LNG) more profitable and competitive with American and Australian supplies, according to Russia’s Energy Minister Alexander Novak. Russia ships most of its […]
US initiative would fail to contain China and put allies at risk
By Ken Moak The January 5 edition of the South China Morning Post reported that the US passed the Asia Reassurance Initiative Act (ARIA) to reaffirm and reassure its “allies” that America […]
Forty years of reform: China vs Singapore
By Sun Xi This month marks the 40th anniversary of the official beginning of China’s reform and opening-up, when the Third Plenary Session of the 11th Central Committee of the Communist Party of […]
Thailand the missing link in China’s Maritime Silk Road
In a policy shift, Thai PM Prayut Chan-ocha says state agencies will study the construction of a long-envisioned ocean-linking canal China craves for economic and security reasons By Benjamin Zawacki After demurring […]
Putin’s three days in Singapore mark Russia’s major geopolitical changes since 2000
Vladimir Putin has been trying to strengthen Russia’s ties with Southeast Asia lately. This is beneficial to all parties, Nikkei Asian Review wrote. After the meeting with the leadership of Singapore, Putin […]
Trade war upsides abound for Vietnam
Trade-geared nation is poised to benefit more than most from coming shifts to global supply chains away from China-based production By Nate Fischler As Asian nations brace for US-China trade war impacts […]
Vietnam reaches for a homegrown tech revolution
Communist planners and private players have prioritized development of indigenous social media and computing platforms to supplant Facebook and Google By David Hutt, @davidhuttjourno Nguyen Manh Hung has been acting Minister of […]
Misaligned rails keep SE Asia de-linked from China
Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative has inspired a flurry of SE Asian railway-building but few of the lines are actually designed to connect to China By Peter Janssen Last month’s launch of […]
Understanding Duterte’s Win-Win South China Sea Model as Confirmed at ASEAN Summit in Singapore
Written by Adam Garrie President Duterte has used the ASEAN summit in Singapore to clarify his South China Sea policy which is increasingly seen as a pioneering effort in the wider world, in […]
Singapore-led Asean favors China over US
In a nod towards Beijing, city-state puts free trade rather than South China Sea disputes at center of regional bloc’s 2018 agenda By Richard Javad Heydarian Singapore’s anticipated chairmanship of the Association […]
China’s Belt and Road, and implications for ASEAN connectivity
By Anushka Kapahi The ASEAN Master Plan for Connectivity (AMPC) and China’s Belt and Road Initiative have major commonalities. Both envisage transport connectivity as a way of bringing countries closer to one another, […]
China, Philippines seek to share South China Sea
Proposed joint development agreement for contested area’s oil and gas underscores diplomatic warming trend but faces legal hurdles and political risks By Richard Javad Heydarian China and the Philippines are now considering […]
Indonesian polls may delay Freeport settlement
US mining giant’s planned divestment in world’s largest gold and second largest copper mine threatens to become ensnared in election politics By John McBeth If the difficult talks between the Indonesian government […]
Indonesia needs China to get back on track
Presidential advisor Luhut Panjaitan tells Asia Times his nation needs more, not less, Chinese investment despite rising criticism of becoming a client state By John McBeth Intent on getting the US$5.9 billion […]
India takes fight to China via SE Asia
Association of Southeast Asian Nations and India’s newly announced ‘Delhi Declaration’ puts maritime security at the forefront of relations By Richard Javad Heydarian In what has been described as “the most significant […]
A man, a plan, a canal…Thailand?
Ex-top brass appeal to new King Vajiralongkorn to bless building the long-envisioned Kra canal; China is keen to start digging General Saiyud Kerdphol, the military engineer of Thailand’s winning Cold War-era anticommunism […]
Australia wins big under revised TPP deal
By Giovanni Di Lieto The revived trade agreement now known as the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) has finally made it across the finish line. It’s a considerable […]
The rough face of Indonesian tourism development
By Alek K Kurniawan Tourism is a priority of Indonesian President Joko Widodo. He has built a lot of infrastructure for it. He has created a friendly policy toward investors. He has […]
Laos dances to survive between China and Vietnam
While often portrayed as a pliant client to its larger neighbors, Vientiane’s balancing act is more astute than widely recognized By John McBeth With its sparse 6.7 million population, land-locked Laos […]
Global Shortage of Key Resource Could Doom Key Asian Infrastructure Projects
In the city of Kampot in southern Cambodia, the extraction of sand from an estuary on the Praek Tuek Chhu river is increasing and sand extraction is so common in Asia currently […]
Railway Diplomacy: How ‘China is Building Routes in All Possible Directions’
Beijing has stepped up its “railway diplomacy” by boosting its infrastructural projects simultaneously on three continents. Speaking to Sputnik, analysts highlighted China’s competitive advantages and shed light on the obstacles the People’s […]
Three cheers for Vietnamese privatisation
The government is floating significant stakes in select state-owned enterprises, including profitable brewers, in a long promised divestment drive By Peter Janssen On December 18, Vietnam kicked off an auction for a […]
One Belt One Road: implications for ASEAN connectivity
By Anushka Kapahi The ASEAN Master Plan for Connectivity (AMPC) and China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) have major shared goals. Both envisage transport connectivity as a way of bringing countries closer […]
