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The first session of the Global Dialogue on AI Governance in Geneva, Switzerland, on July 6. Photo: Xinhua
Diplomacy

Opinion | US-China AI rivalry needn’t preclude cooperation

Forcing countries to choose between the US’ and China’s initiatives would be counterproductive to global AI governance.

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Asean

Opinion | Why Southeast Asia isn’t buying the US’ offer of ‘flexible realism’

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Asean

Opinion | As the US and China compete over AI, Asean must secure strategic autonomy

US-China relations

Opinion | The security-obsessed global economy needs its own Helsinki process

Cold War rivals used ground rules to make competition more transparent, bounded and predictable. Today’s weaponised trade needs the same ambition.

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Illustration: Henry Wong
Illustration: Henry Wong
Middle East

Opinion | Could Mecca defence pact be first step to new Middle East order?

As security deal shakes up calculations for the US, China and Russia, a regional order shaped by regional states is no longer unthinkable.

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Diplomacy

Opinion | For states, being part of everything doesn’t mean being part of nothing

The opposite of commitment is breach, not multiplicity. A nation’s reliability isn’t measured by how many treaties it signs.

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Malaysia

The View | Malaysia wants sustainable data centres, not a blanket ban

Unlike the US backlash, Malaysia is drawing up efficiency requirements to guide a sustainable tech boom.

Construction workers walk to a data centre building under construction at Sedenak Tech Park in the Johor state of Malaysia on September 27, 2024. Johor was Southeast Asia’s fastest-growing data centre market last year and accounts for 80 per cent of Malaysia’s data centre capacity. Photo: AP
Construction workers walk to a data centre building under construction at Sedenak Tech Park in the Johor state of Malaysia on September 27, 2024. Johor was Southeast Asia’s fastest-growing data centre market last year and accounts for 80 per cent of Malaysia’s data centre capacity. Photo: AP
China technology

Opinion | Asia is reaching for the open road that Chinese AI offers

Countries seeking sovereign AI want to control their own AI capabilities rather than rent them from a foreign platform.

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Hong Kong economy

Opinion | Hong Kong can open a lucrative new frontier as Chinese tech IP hub

As the city works more closely with mainland tech firms seeking to expand internationally, it can carve out a distinctive role.

Hong Kong economy

Macroscope | What’s so bad about a planned Hong Kong economy? Just look at Singapore

Dismissing economic planning out of hand is a mistake. The market does not always get it right.

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Downtown Singapore. A partially planned economy like Singapore’s is a workable alternative to leaving things entirely to the private sector. Photo: Shutterstock
Myanmar

Asian Angle | SpaceX’s Starlink blackout punishes Myanmar civilians, not just cybercriminals

An estimated 13 million people – nearly a quarter of Myanmar’s population – rely on Starlink for internet access.

A man uses his mobile phone while sheltering under an umbrella as rain falls in Yangon, Myanmar, on August 11. Photo: AFP
A man uses his mobile phone while sheltering under an umbrella as rain falls in Yangon, Myanmar, on August 11. Photo: AFP
Chinese culture

Being Chinese | If your elders stop organising Chinese New Year, will you know how to?

For most of my life, festive gatherings seemed to happen automatically. What happens when those quietly maintaining family traditions stop?

South China Sea

Opinion | How China can turn its ‘blue cradle’ into a bridge with Southeast Asia

A jointly governed, tiered South China Sea ocean data framework would transform knowledge of a contested sea into stewardship of a shared one.

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Japan

Macroscope | Japan isn’t the only Asian economy giving bond markets a headache

Bond markets are nervous about central banks’ ability to contain inflation as South Korea, Indonesia and the Philippines face similar pressures.

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People walk past an electronics retail store in the Shinjuku district in Tokyo on August 17. Japan’s GDP grew at an annualised rate of 1.1 per cent in the April-June period from the previous three months. Photo: EPA
Diplomacy

Opinion | Trump’s blunt remarks offer South Korea an opportunity

Reduced US-South Korea drills complicate Seoul’s security dilemma but are also a low-cost goodwill signal to Pyongyang that could create room for dialogue.

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US Army armoured vehicles gather to cross a river at a training field in Yeoncheon, South Korea, near the border with North Korea, on August 17. Photo: AP
US Army armoured vehicles gather to cross a river at a training field in Yeoncheon, South Korea, near the border with North Korea, on August 17. Photo: AP
Asia housing and property

The View | Japan property is booming, but China is where the value lies

Japan’s commercial property market is in a league of its own, but the sharp repricing in China creates compelling opportunities for investors.

War and conflict

Opinion | Chokepoints and the cost of cutting off access

The most dangerous chokepoint may not be the narrowest strait or rarest tech but where the final decision rests with the fewest people.

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Vietnam

Asian Angle | How Vietnam’s ‘streamlining revolution’ may lead to uneven success

The most sweeping administrative overhaul in decades is expected to encounter hurdles ranging from staff shortages to resource mismatch.

A woman uses her phone next to Vietnamese national flags and Communist Party of Vietnam flags in Hanoi. Photo: AFP
A woman uses her phone next to Vietnamese national flags and Communist Party of Vietnam flags in Hanoi. Photo: AFP
Hong Kong economy

Opinion | Hong Kong’s night economy must focus on after-dark vibes, not events

Organising the biggest spectacles or boasting of the loudest nightlife matters less than understanding why people choose to stay out in the first place.

Banking & finance

Opinion | Just like with the yen, America cannot save the AI bubble

The Japanese currency and US tech stocks share the same fatal problem: momentum can’t survive broken fundamentals.

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Middle East

Opinion | How Mecca defence pact changes China’s calculations in the Middle East

Defence pact between Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan presents a complex strategic calculus for Beijing, demanding a masterclass in balance.

Illustration: Lau Ka-kuen
India

Opinion | China found the word India’s ‘cockroach’ protests missed

China’s crisis crept in over years, slow enough for a society to find a term for the phenomenon and debate it, while India’s arose over a single exam season.

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Protesters in Mumbai celebrate after Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan resigned following nationwide protests as part of the Cockroach Janta Party’s protest movement on July 26. Photo: AP
Protesters in Mumbai celebrate after Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan resigned following nationwide protests as part of the Cockroach Janta Party’s protest movement on July 26. Photo: AP
Hong Kong economy

Opinion | How Hong Kong can unlock the real value of its Asean trade boom

By providing high-value services that enable cross-border transactions and corporate expansion, the city can convert surging commerce into long-term economic returns.

India

The View | If India wants an edge on China, it must study education reform

While recent protests were triggered by irregularities in the national medical entrance exam, the quality of education more broadly warrants attention.

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SCO

Opinion | The SCO is caught between regional weight and global ambitions

As the SCO marks its 25th anniversary, internal rifts as well as limited financial integration and security cooperation are holding it back.

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Illustration: Henry Wong
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