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ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute

ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute
ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute: A prominent Singapore-based research institute and statutory board, ISEAS is dedicated to the study of Southeast Asia’s socio-political, security, and economic trends. Established in 1968 and renamed in 2015 in honour of Singapore’s first President, Yusof Ishak, it serves as a national and regional resource centre. Its main activities include conducting extensive research programmes, hosting conferences, and publishing academic works. The institute is recognised for stimulating scholarly debate and enhancing public awareness of the region.
Malaysian army officers visit the booth of Special Technology Control, a Russian developer of unmanned systems, at the Defence Services Asia exhibition in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on Tuesday. Photo: EPA
Malaysia

At Malaysia’s arms bazaar, drone dealers chase Southeast Asian market share

‘Drone warfare is the future,’ say arms dealers in Kuala Lumpur – and the region’s militaries are buying in.

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China’s Communist Party

China must ‘strengthen education’ of Tibetan Buddhists, Beijing official says

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Asean

Why Indonesia is ceding its role as Asean’s natural leader to Singapore

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Japan

Vietnam, Philippines trust Japan. But Indonesia’s more cautious

Analysts say Indonesia worries about its neutrality as Tokyo ramps up ties with the US and lags behind China on green investment.

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Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and US President Donald Trump share a glance during remarks at White House dinner on March 19. Photo: Kyodo
Renewable energy

China begins building US$1 billion hydropower station in Cambodia

As focus switches to renewable energy, pumped-storage hydropower project in Koh Kong province expected to be completed by 2029.

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Japan

Why Japan will remain the most trusted power in Asean despite military push

A survey by ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute shows respondents trusted Japan more as a power than the EU, the US, China and India.

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Singapore

Singapore balances national interest with rising anti-US sentiment

Negative public sentiment does not immediately translate to worsening bilateral ties as the US remains an important partner, experts say.

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A banner at a protest in Singapore’s Hong Lim Park on Saturday shows past and present US presidents with horns on their heads. Photo: Instagram/sgacadboycott
Asean

Asian Angle | Doubts about Trump strain Southeast Asia’s US-China balancing act

An increasingly unpredictable Washington is making the region’s traditional hedging strategy harder to sustain.

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Vietnam

Asian Angle | Who is Vietnam’s new Prime Minister Le Minh Hung?

The ex-central banker has the credentials to succeed. Whether he has the political capital remains to be seen.

China trade

‘Cancelling orders’ in China: Hormuz oil crisis hits transport and manufacturing

Analysts and industry insiders say higher costs are squeezing margins, with some of China’s wary industrial heartland compelled to make day-to-day purchases.

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Employees work on an assembly line producing smartphone holders at a plastic-accessories factory in China’s Guangdong province earlier this month. Rising oil prices are driving up production costs for plastic manufacturers. Photo: Reuters
US, Israel war on Iran

Iran’s Hormuz toll threat lays bare Asia’s energy vulnerability

Analysts warn that charging ships to pass through Hormuz could set a dangerous precedent for other strategic waterways and hit Asia hardest.

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Tankers sail in the Gulf, near the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from northern Ras al-Khaimah, near the border with Oman’s Musandam governance, on March 11. Photo: Reuters
Singapore

Singapore set to be hit by global energy crisis as it unveils countermeasures

Among the measures, the government announced an increase of US$155 to a cost-of-living cash payment to eligible Singaporeans.

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Asean

Most in Asean prefer China over US in survey, Trump cited as biggest concern

Support for China was stronger in Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Singapore, according to the ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute survey.

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Vietnam

To Lam emerges as Vietnam’s ‘supreme leader’ after being elected president

The Communist Party chief is the first person to secure the top two jobs through the party’s normal leadership selection processes.

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Communist Party head To Lam is sworn in as Vietnam’s president on Tuesday. Photo: EPA
South China Sea

Why China and Vietnam are shifting from confrontation to calm in South China Sea

Disagreements continue, but the two sides are showing notable restraint in contrast with Beijing’s fierce exchanges with Manila.

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Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi with Vietnamese counterpart Bui Thanh Son, in Hanoi on March 17. They co-chaired a meeting on bilateral cooperation. Photo: Xinhua
Indonesia

Indonesia slashes free meals budget to save US$2.3 billion as fuel prices soar

President Prabowo Subianto had previously insisted that the meal programme would be untouched.

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Asean

Burning daylight: Asean’s power grid plans get an Iran war jolt

Oil is up, coal is back and so are fuel queues. As the Middle East burns, Southeast Asia dusts off an old plan to rewire its future.

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Indonesia

Opinion | Indonesia’s new aircraft carrier is more vanity project than war machine

The jet-less carrier might buy Jakarta a seat at the elite table, but it offers no advantage in modern naval warfare.

The Italian aircraft carrier Giuseppe Garibaldi pictured in 2016. Photo: AFP
China-Japan relations

Why Beijing has struggled to rally Asia against Japan over PM’s Taiwan remarks

Many in the region harbour security concerns similar to Tokyo’s and prefer to stay neutral between the Asian heavyweights, analysts say.

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Asean

New US trade offensive threatens to test Asean ties

The trade probes may compel Southeast Asia to continue diversifying away from the US, with analysts predicting recent deals could unravel.

US-China relations

With Trump’s China trip in limbo, further trade talks loom: analysts

As the US president cites the Iran war for his delay and Paris talks see only minor progress, experts said more negotiations were likely.

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US President Donald Trump speaks after signing an executive order regarding a task force on fraud in the Oval Office of the White House on Monday. Photo: AP
Asean

Can Asean break free from US-China supply chain grip?

The bloc will look for new markets and deepen regional cooperation to reduce trade uncertainty, economic ministers say.

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Regional ministers pose for a group photo during the Asean Economic Ministers’ Retreat in Manila on Friday. Photo: EPA
Asean

Opinion | Underwater and unprotected: why Asean and the EU must secure subsea lifelines

With global data at risk from hybrid threats, Southeast Asia and Europe need to look past declarations to secure our shared data arteries.

Myanmar

Opinion | Myanmar’s junta staged an election. It couldn’t stage legitimacy

A closer look at the vote raises doubts about whether the generals can hold the country hostage in the long term.

Two Sessions 2026

China codifies ethnic assimilation with new ‘unity’ law as it counters the West

Legal safeguards heed Xi Jinping’s call to foster ‘shared spiritual home’ with an eye on staving off ‘domestic friction’, analysts say.

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Ethnic minority delegates leave a plenary session of the National People’s Congress (NPC) held at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Monday. Photo: AP
Asean

‘We will go to war’: why #SEAblings became a Southeast Asian rallying cry

The hashtag went viral following a row over a South Korean band’s concert in Kuala Lumpur in January and protests in Indonesia last year.

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A social media post using #SEAblings and an illustration over a row following South Korean rock band Day6’s concert in Kuala Lumpur. Photo: X/Boju
Asean

Opinion | Fatigue is rewriting the US-China soft power contest, starting in Asean

At a time when no one has bandwidth left, soft power is being won by being the partner that feels usable, steady and low-risk.

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Singapore

Singapore strives to stay non-aligned amid US-China rivalry, new conflicts

Foreign minister says the city state must assert its distinctiveness to remain relevant and will not act as a proxy for any major power.

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