TOPIC

Asean

Asean
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or Asean, was established on 8 August 1967 in Bangkok, Thailand, with the signing of the Asean Declaration by Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand. Since then, membership has expanded to include Brunei, Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam. Its aims include accelerating economic growth, social progress and cultural development of its member states and the protection of regional peace and stability.
People from China, Vietnam, and Ethiopia – believed trafficked and forced to work in scam centers – sit masked in detention after their February release in Myawaddy, eastern Myanmar. Photo: AP
Malaysia

31 Malaysians repatriated from Myanmar job scam syndicate

The job scam victims rescued from a Myawaddy job syndicate return home safely after intensive diplomatic negotiations and a 26-hour land journey.

videocam
Cambodia

Thai-Cambodia border dispute reignites with bombing claims of casino hub

videocam
China trade

Battle for China’s durian market gets even juicier as Laos enters the fray

videocam
Indonesia

Video | Indonesian minister dismisses Malaysian flood aid, sparking outrage

Tito Karnavian dismissed a US$60,000 aid package as ‘not much’ compared with Jakarta’s own disaster response, sparking online criticism.

Tito Karnavian dismissed a US$60,000 aid package as ‘not much’ compared with Jakarta’s own disaster response, sparking online criticism
02:32
US-China relations

Senior US and Chinese defence officials continue ‘military-to-military’ dialogue

Talks follow Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth’s meeting with China’s Minister of National Defence, Admiral Dong Jun, to help stabilise ties.

10
Thailand

Will holiday high season survive Thai-Cambodian border conflict?

Curfews, increased airport screening and the bombing of the province housing Angkor Wat have rattled foreign travellers.

videocam
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
US-China relations

US denies Indo-Pacific retreat, says aid is being recalibrated to counter China

Washington argues that targeted assistance and partnerships will deepen regional ties and deliver longer-term economic and security gains.

17
A toll booth at the Clark Freeport Zone in the Philippines, a sprawling managed economic zone that has received significant US backing through development initiatives. Photo: Handout
Mainland China

China-led Asia-Pacific lifts global aviation outlook as profits set to soar

Passenger demand from China and India, eased visa rules and freight resilience drive growth as IATA forecasts record airline profits in 2026.

Electric & new energy vehicles

Xpeng steps up ‘go global’ drive with Malaysian assembly hub for Southeast Asia

The Guangzhou-based company said it would partner with Malaysia’s EP Manufacturing to locally assemble intelligent EVs.

Thailand

Thailand considers blocking fuel exports to Cambodia as conflict escalates

Thailand last year exported 2.2 billion litres of fuel to Cambodia, according to the energy ministry’s data.

People take refuge in Wat Prasat Srahkandal, Banteay Menchey province, Cambodia on Sunday, after fleeing their homes following fighting along the Thailand-Cambodia border. Photo: AP
US-Asean relations

Southeast Asia barely features in America’s new security strategy

The region appears just twice in the new 32-page US National Security Strategy, raising fears it is being relegated to a ‘bargaining chip’.

19
US President Donald Trump is pictured next to Malaysian flags before departing Kuala Lumpur International Airport on Air Force One in October. Photo: AFP
The Philippines

Asian Angle | Is the new Philippines-Germany defence pact built to last?

Rising anxieties over Beijing and Moscow have united Berlin and Manila in an axis that must now be institutionalised to ensure it endures.

Going Global

Chinese companies expand globally

Chinese firms are investing in overseas factories and marketing to develop global brands. Domestic price wars are pushing more companies to go global – “chuhai” in Chinese – in search of new growth opportunities.

China-India relations

Trump, Modi have ‘warm’ phone call – but 2025 unlikely to end with a trade deal

Even after calls for India to contribute more in the Indo-Pacific to counter China and deepen defence ties, Trump refuses to budge on trade concessions.

videocam
US President Donald Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi enjoyed a friendly phone call on Thursday, but a trade deal between the two countries is still some way off. Photo: AP
Thailand

Video | Thai military drones strike Cambodian border

At least 15 people, including Thai soldiers and Cambodian civilians, have died in the most recent border clashes.

Military drones hit this casino building along the border.
01:01
China economy

Opinion | How China is cementing its central role as the architect of green tech

Beyond climate leadership and capacity building, China is rewriting its own energy system – and the global energy order.

videocam
US-China relations

Hegseth’s G2 description for US-China ties ‘problematic’, House Democrat warns

House representative Raja Krishnamoorthi says term sidelines US allies and partners while making Beijing ‘coequal’ to Washington.

videocam
20
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Thailand

‘Credible mediation’: Asean urged to help halt deadly Thailand-Cambodia clashes

Analysts urge Asean to take ‘urgent, coordinated action’ if it hopes to mediate an end to the Thailand-Cambodia conflict.

videocam
A Thai villager inspects his house damaged during clashes between Thai and Cambodian troops, at a village in Surin province, Thailand, on Tuesday. Photo: EPA
US-China relations

China closes capacity and influence gap with US in Asia, power index finds

Think tank says China may weather geopolitical environment but neighbours are ‘anxious about rising tensions and protectionism’.

videocam
24
South China Sea

Beijing seeks ‘fair and just maritime order’ in South China Sea

Vice-minister Sun Weidong says China rejects 2016 arbitration ruling on disputed waters because it breaches fundamentals in international law.

videocam
44
Scams and swindles

Letters | Cambodia is confronting the scourge of online scams head-on

Readers discuss the cross-border effort targeting the syndicates behind Cambodia’s scam farms, Malaysia’s first fully home-grown EV, and the investigation into the Tai Po fire in Hong Kong.

Suspects are detained during a police raid on a scam centre in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, on July 16. The operation was part of a nationwide crackdown on cybercrime networks, following Prime Minister Hun Manet’s order to shut down online scam operations often run like sweatshops. Photo: EPA
Cambodia

Video | Thai-Cambodian border sees renewed clashes

The neighbouring countries’ fragile peace deal is on the verge of collapse amid fresh violence.

erqwrgrqe
02:09
Artificial intelligence

‘We all knew’: is your job safe from the AI you are helping to train?

Asia makes the chips driving the AI boom, but the technology threatens to erase jobs and widen the region’s wealth gap, a new UN report says.

Myanmar

Myanmar’s criticism of Takaichi signals ‘loyalty’ to China ahead of election

A junta spokesman slammed the Japanese prime minister’s comments on Taiwan, saying Tokyo had not shown remorse for its ‘crimes’ in Asia.

videocam
Singapore

‘No longer contentious’: Malaysia to weigh Singapore’s water project plan

The two countries have disagreed over water supply for decades, such as the perceived low prices charged by Malaysia’s Johor.

7
The border crossing connecting Singapore to the Malaysian southern city of Johor Bahru. The state of Johor supplies untreated water to Singapore daily. Photo: AFP
Hong Kong’s Tai Po fire tragedy

In wake of Hong Kong blaze, Southeast Asia’s fire hazards come under scrutiny

Serious structural defects and inefficient bureaucracy tainted by corruption are common in the region, fire safety experts say.

A person watches as a major fire engulfs residential buildings at Wang Fuk Court in Hong Kong on November 26. Photo: dpa
Cambodia

Thailand, Cambodia clash at UN mine ban talks as ‘fragile’ border truce teeters

Analysts warn relations are in a ‘fragile place’ as the neighbours trade barbs and leverage international law at a UN meeting in Geneva.

videocam
China manufacturing

Factory of factories: China’s manufacturers join wave of overseas expansions

With many of their clients moving or building sites abroad, China’s factory owners are following suit, seizing a ‘last chance’ for new revenues.

videocam
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Help preserve 120 years of quality journalism.
SUPPORT NOW
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement