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April 14, 2026
 

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Philip J. Heijmans
An F-35C Lightning II is staged for flight operations on the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, in support of Operation Epic Fury, on March 2.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Mar 13, 2026
U.S. allies near China on edge as weapons shift from Asia to Iran
Even if fighting wraps up soon, there is concern that depleted stockpiles of munitions could take years to replace, leaving Taiwan and other places vulnerable.
An Iranian warship is struck by a U.S. torpedo in the Indian Ocean, from footage released by the U.S. Department of Defense on Wednesday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Mar 7, 2026
U.S. submarine strike in Indian Ocean brings Iran war to Asia
By striking the warship IRIS Dena about 40 nautical miles off Sri Lanka¡¯s coast, Washington signaled no Iranian vessel is beyond reach.
Computers, smartphones and other equipment seized during a raid on a scam center in Kandal province, Cambodia, last year.
ASIA PACIFIC / Crime & Legal
Feb 26, 2026
Cambodia claims its crackdown has halved online scam activity
The Southeast Asian nation is under international pressure to dismantle networks accused of stealing billions annually from people worldwide.
An election billboard featuring Union Solidarity and Development Party Chairman Khin Yi in Lashio in Myanmar¡¯s northern Shan state
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Dec 23, 2025
Myanmar junta seeks legitimacy in election widely seen as flawed
The military¡¯s tenuous control over the country, a raging civil war and a crackdown on political opponents have already cast the polls as a sham, according to most observers.
U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro has leaned into the involvement of ethnic Chinese or citizens in scam operations.
ASIA PACIFIC / Crime & Legal
Nov 13, 2025
U.S. ¡®Strike Force¡¯ to combat scam centers in Southeast Asia
The U.S. Justice Department is aiming to fight a surge in cryptocurrency?investment fraud by transnational criminal organizations.
U.S. President Donald Trump raises his fist as he boards Air Force One before traveling to South Korea, from Tokyo's Haneda Airport on Wednesday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / FOCUS
Nov 2, 2025
Trump plays nice with Asian allies stung by repeated threats
While allies in Asia have ample reason to be wary of U.S. President Donald Trump, the message from his regional tour appeared to be that America isn't going anywhere.
U.S. President Donald Trump looks on next to people waving Malaysian national flags before he departs from Kuala Lumpur International Airport on Monday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Oct 28, 2025
Trump¡¯s new trade deals give U.S. an edge over Southeast Asia
The pacts give Trump some clear wins, such as the removal of many tariff and nontariff barriers on U.S. exports into those countries.
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks with Malaysia's Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim as he walks from Air Force One upon arrival at Kuala Lumpur International Airport on Sunday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / FOCUS
Oct 28, 2025
Anwar turns Malaysia into stage for dealmaking with Trump¡¯s help
Local media largely portrayed Anwar¡¯s hosting of the ASEAN summit as a showcase of Malaysia¡¯s diplomatic resurgence, calling it a moment of renewed regional leadership.
The World Bank has highlighted a persistent gap between younger and more experienced workers across several Asian economies in a regional economic update released Tuesday.
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 8, 2025
Asia¡¯s youth struggle to find good jobs, World Bank warns
The bank highlighted a persistent gap between younger and more experienced workers across several Asian economies.
Paetongtarn Shinawatra, who was dismissed as Thailand's prime minister by the Constitutional Court last Friday, leaves the court in Bangkok following a news conference after her removal.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Sep 1, 2025
Persecuted Thai pro-democracy party now poised to play kingmaker
The People¡¯s Party, which has been in opposition since a 2023 election despite winning the most seats, is being courted by rival groups seeking to form a government.
Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong
BUSINESS / Tech
Aug 18, 2025
Singapore prioritizes jobs amid fragmenting world and the rise of AI
Prime Minister Lawrence Wong campaigned on the need to preserve stability amid slowing global growth and rising protectionism.
Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra waves after Thailand's Constitutional Court suspended her from duty pending a case seeking her dismissal, at the Government House in Bangkok on Tuesday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jul 2, 2025
Thai leader¡¯s suspension deals new blow to battered economy
Thailand is mired in slow growth, with households burdened by debt, a budget bill outstanding and the threat of U.S. tariffs weighing down expectations.
Governments seeking agreements to whittle down country-by-country tariffs U.S. President Donald Trump announced on April 2, and then suspended until July 9, have no idea where additional levies will land.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 27, 2025
Trump¡¯s threat of more tariffs makes U.S. trade partners wary of signing deals
The U.S. might apply levies under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act on a range of foreign-made products in certain industries.
Many economies in Asia have invested at much lower levels on defense than the U.S., expecting the support of Washington¡¯s military might.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jun 6, 2025
Asia sees Trump¡¯s 5%-of-GDP defense spending goal as unrealistic
In interviews, key defense officials in Asia have been clear: The ambition is understood, but the math just doesn¡¯t add up.
The Silver Dania, a Norwegian-owned ship suspected of cable sabotage in the Baltic Sea, whose crew are Russian citizens, in Tromso, Norway, on Jan. 31
WORLD / Politics
Jun 2, 2025
Southeast Asia joins Europe¡¯s calls to defend subsea cables
A spike in cable damage in European waters, particularly in the Baltic Sea, has heightened fears about the global network of subsea cables' vulnerability.
Containers are stacked at a port in Vietnam
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Apr 5, 2025
Southeast Asia rushes to avert tariff pain by enticing Trump
Southeast Asia¡¯s offers to negotiate contrast with China¡¯s retaliation, while the European Union is preparing its own countermeasures if talks fail.
Containers stacked up at the Phnom Penh Autonomous Port in Phnom Penh on Thursday. Southeast Asian countries with a significant trade surplus with the U.S. came in for harsh treatment from Trump's stinging tariffs.
BUSINESS / Economy
Apr 4, 2025
Trump tariffs are a ¡®disaster¡¯ for world¡¯s poorest countries
Poor nations' labor-intensive export industries face new risk in trade war.
Donald Trump's presidency took third place in a new survey on Southeast Asia's top three geopolitical concerns.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Apr 4, 2025
Trump presidency a key concern for Southeast Asia, survey shows
Trump took third place at 46.9% in top concerns for Southeast Asians, according to a ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute survey published Thursday.
Myanmar's military chief, Min Aung Hlaing (center), arrives to meet earthquake survivors gathered on the compound of a hospital in Naypyitaw on Friday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / FOCUS
Apr 1, 2025
Deadly quake gives junta a chance to tighten hold over Myanmar
Even as the damage of Friday¡¯s quake was still being assessed, pro-democracy rebel groups reported fresh airstrikes in areas close to the epicenter.
Former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte appears on a screen in a courtroom at the International Criminal Court in The Hague, Netherlands, on Friday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Mar 15, 2025
Duterte¡¯s swift descent from ¡®Punisher¡¯ president to inmate
Duterte's team seemed unconcerned about rumors that the International Criminal Court might issue an arrest warrant against him. It was a fatal mistake.
Jehovah's Witnesses followers sue Japanese government
According to court records, the plaintiffs include the Japanese branch of Jehovah's Witnesses in Ebina, Kanagawa Prefecture.
Debt-laden Japan should review spending on gender equality, survey finds
A woman holds a handheld fan bearing the image of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's wedding photo, during an election campaign event in Tokyo on Feb. 7.
Japanese researchers look at 800-year-old books and trees for signs of extreme solar events
A drawing of Fujiwara no Teika, known as a courtier, <i>waka</i> poet and scholar of the late Heian and early Kamakura periods
Japan freezes visa applications for foreign restaurant workers
Filipinos with specified skills qualifications learn how to prepare fish for sushi in Tokyo in 2022.
At Ueno Station, ¡®Freedom¡¯ restored
¡°Freedom,¡± a mural in JR Ueno Station, created in 1951, has been repaired three times, most recently in 2025.
Where Tokyo goes to sweat and soak
As Tokyo&#039;s public bathhouses age, many are embracing more contemporary aesthetics to stay relevant for a younger class of customer.
At Ueno Station, ¡®Freedom¡¯ restored
¡°Freedom,¡± a mural in JR Ueno Station, created in 1951, has been repaired three times, most recently in 2025.
Inside Iizukatei, a 200-year-old home turned boutique hotel in Tochigi
Recognized as a tangible cultural property in 2003, the former residence of the Iizuka family is now a boutique hotel in Nakagawa, Tochigi Prefecture.
Tokyo¡¯s sake calendar is filled to the brim
The recently concluded Sake Park invited younger brewers to make sake more approachable for attendees in their 20s and 30s.
Japan¡¯s tighter immigration controls yielding results
An immigration control passport stamp issued in Japan. A surge in arrivals from overseas has coincided with a tightening of immigration controls under a government initiative aimed at reducing overstayers.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo¡¯s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo¡¯s ¡®stadium of desire¡¯

Longform

Projects like the BuddhaBot aim to re-create dialogue once lost to time, raising questions about whether AI can extend the teachings of Buddha or merely simulate them.
Can AI replace a priest? Japan¡¯s temples and shrines are testing the limits.
By Alex K.T. Martin

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