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May 21, 2026
 

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SOUTHEAST ASIA

Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto (right) delivers a speech on the macroeconomic framework to lawmakers as Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka looks on at the Parliament building in Jakarta on Wednesday.
BUSINESS
May 21, 2026
Prabowo¡¯s biggest crackdown on tycoons shocked his own officials
A surprise move by President Prabowo Subianto to centralize Indonesia's commodity exports has rattled markets and intensified investor concerns over state intervention.
Concern is growing that Indonesia, the world's third-largest democracy, ?is backsliding toward?army rule under President Prabowo Subianto.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 20, 2026
Indonesian authorities target critics via online disinformation campaigns: Amnesty
Amnesty International's findings reflect growing concerns that Indonesia, the world's third-largest democracy, ?is backsliding toward army rule under President Prabowo Subianto.
Tourists relax along Patong Beach on the southern Thai island of Phuket in 2024. Thailand is drastically cutting the length of visa-free stays for tourists from more than 90 countries in an effort to curb crime involving foreign nationals, officials said on Tuesday.
ASIA PACIFIC
May 20, 2026
Thailand cuts visa-free stays, citing crime by foreigners
Tourism is vital to the Southeast Asian nation's economy, but foreign arrivals have yet to return to their pre-Covid highs.
Prison guards escort Chinese nationals suspected of running scam centers to a prison after their arrest in Colombo, Sri Lanka, on May 9. A surge in arrests of suspected foreign scammers in Sri Lanka has authorities concerned that the island is fast becoming a hub for online crime.
ASIA PACIFIC / Crime & Legal
May 20, 2026
Crackdown in Southeast Asia pushes scam networks to Sri Lanka
Since the start of the year, police have arrested more than 1,000 foreign nationals, mainly from China, Vietnam and India, for alleged involvement in cybercrime.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi meets with Vietnamese President To Lam in Hanoi on May 2. Japan needs to recognize its role in strengthening ASEAN's autonomy as part of its own economic strategy.
COMMENTARY / Japan
May 19, 2026
ASEAN unity and Japan¡¯s role amid U.S.-China tensions
Japan needs to recognize its role in strengthening ASEAN's autonomy as part of its own economic strategy.
Bangkok in December 2025. Thailand risks losing ground to regional rivals such as Vietnam and Indonesia, which have moved more aggressively to streamline regulatory regimes and court foreign capital.
BUSINESS
May 18, 2026
Thailand plans reform of up to 7,000 business rules to tempt foreign investment
Thailand risks losing ground to regional rivals such as Vietnam and Indonesia, which have moved more aggressively to streamline regulatory regimes.
Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim at an ASEAN Summit in Cebu, Philippines, on May 7. He has raised the prospect of a snap election as divisions deepen within the country's ruling coalition.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 18, 2026
Malaysia¡¯s coalition tensions deepen as Anwar floats snap poll
Cracks in Malaysia's political landscape have become more evident in recent months amid tensions over state elections and defections from the prime minister's party.
Philippine Vice President Sara Duterte announces her intention to run for the country's presidency in 2028 during a news conference in Mandaluyong, Metro Manila, on Feb.18.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 18, 2026
Sara Duterte trial to open next phase of Philippine political turmoil
The political drama is rattling a country with a weak economy and may limit the ability of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to stem the bleeding.
Leaders and other officials of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations pose for a group photo during the opening ceremony of the 48th ASEAN summit in Cebu, Philippines, on May 8.
COMMENTARY / World
May 17, 2026
Why ASEAN chose silence amid the growing Gulf crisis
In Cebu, much of the summit's energy went into drafting a statement broad enough to avoid offending any member state.
¡°Areas connected to southern China such as Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam will be potential regions that the company will look into,¡± said Sojitz Chief Financial Officer Makoto Shibuya.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 13, 2026
Japan¡¯s Sojitz eyes Southeast Asia for new rare earths supply
The company will also consider India and other countries if suitable rare earths investment opportunities exist there.
Myanmar Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs U Hau Khan Sum (left) poses for a photo with Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and his wife Liza Araneta Marcos at a welcome ceremony during the 48th Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit in Cebu, Philippines on May 8.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 11, 2026
Myanmar complains over pariah treatment in ASEAN bloc
The 11-country Association of Southeast Asian Nations has shunned Myanmar from summits since its military launched a coup in 2021.
Former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra reaches out to his daughter, Paetongtarn Shinawatra, following his release on parole after serving eight months of his one-year sentence at Klong Prem Central Prison, in Bangkok on Monday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 11, 2026
Former Thai PM Thaksin Shinawatra released from prison
The 76-year-old patriarch of the Shinawatra clan was paroled after serving eight months in prison for corruption.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi waves as she departs a Royal Australian Air Force base in Canberra on May 5, after a three-day official visit.
COMMENTARY / Japan
May 10, 2026
Was Japan¡¯s recent Golden Week diplomatic offensive effective, let alone ¡®strategic¡¯?
Prime Ministger Takaichi risks continuing a pattern of compressed, opportunistic diplomacy ¡ª busy, but not always effective.
Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi along with his Indonesian counterpart, Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin, inspect an honor guard during a welcome ceremony in Jakarta on Monday.
COMMENTARY / Japan
May 8, 2026
Indonesia-Japan defense pact reshapes Indo-Pacific security
The implications for the Indo-Pacific are significant. A more capable Indonesia could strengthen deterrence and help maintain open sea lanes, reinforcing regional stability.
Myanmar¡¯s junta chief Min Aung Hlaing. Officials from Southeast Asian countries are considering engaging with Myanmar's military-controlled government after years of diplomatic isolation.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 8, 2026
Southeast Asian nations see possible opening for thaw with Myanmar years after coup
Myanmar has been largely sidelined by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations since a 2021 military coup that sparked a civil war.
A man runs past national flags of ASEAN member states outside a media center in Cebu on Tuesday, ahead of the 48th ASEAN Summit to be held this week.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 7, 2026
Energy crisis front and center as ASEAN leaders prepare for summit
The energy crisis will force Manila leadership to craft a ?regional response while preventing regional conflicts in Myanmar, Thailand and Cambodia from slipping down the agenda.
A family walks across a dried up fishery south of Manila in 2015, where the El Nino weather phenomenon ravaged farmlands and damaged crops.
ASIA PACIFIC
May 5, 2026
¡®Super El Nino¡¯ raises fears for Asia reeling from Middle East conflict
The continent is now facing the prospect of strong climate conditions that could spike energy demand, sap hydropower?and damage crops.
Auto rickshaw drivers, along with members of the Awami Rickshaw Union, protest rising fuel prices in Lahore, Pakistan, on April 7 amid the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 30, 2026
Get ready for another summer of rage in Asia
Young workers are especially vulnerable. Even before the war, the World Bank had warned of mounting unemployment among the region's youth.
Former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra arrives at the Supreme Court in Bangkok on Sept. 9, 2025, ahead of a ruling on whether he properly served a prison term in 2023.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Apr 30, 2026
Ex-Thai PM Thaksin set for parole after eight months in prison
The release paves the way for his possible return to politics as his family's party takes a lesser role in a new conservative-led government.
In a bipolar system dominated by America and China, Japan should navigate the rivalry by deepening its alliances, diversifying economic ties and maintaining flexible, practical diplomacy in Asia.?
COMMENTARY / Japan
Apr 30, 2026
Japan¡¯s balancing act in an era of U.S.-China dominance
Tokyo's move toward defense spending of 2% of GDP is not militarism. It is overdue burden-sharing within an alliance that is the foundation of regional deterrence.
Female death row inmate sues Japan government over 24/7 surveillance
Tokyo Detention House guidelines dictate that CCTV surveillance can be used when detainees are at risk of suicide or self-harm, or when there is concern they may try to escape.
Almost half of foreign residents have experienced discrimination: government survey
Japan¡¯s foreign resident population rose 9.5% to a record 4.12 million at the end of 2025, topping 4 million for the first time, according to data from the Immigration Services Agency.
¡®There was no village¡¯: Japan¡¯s troubling pattern of family murder-suicides
Akiko Hashiguchi is one of the few people in Japan to publicly share her personal experience with muri shinj¨± under her own name. She has since been involved in parents¡¯ support work and advocacy around developmental disorders.
Japan arrests Americans over stunt at baby monkey Punch¡¯s zoo
Visitors gather in the rain to catch a glimpse of Punch the monkey at Ichikawa City Zoo in Ichikawa, Chiba Prefecture, in April.
Visitors to Japan down 5.5% in April
Japan Tourism Agency chief Shigeki Murata has emphasized that the government will work on implementing "strategic promotions to attract visitors from more countries and regions."
¡®There was no village¡¯: Japan¡¯s troubling pattern of family murder-suicides
Akiko Hashiguchi is one of the few people in Japan to publicly share her personal experience with muri shinj¨± under her own name. She has since been involved in parents¡¯ support work and advocacy around developmental disorders.
Before city pop went global, there was Anri
Anri says younger overseas listeners first surprised her during a 2023 performance in Los Angeles, where most of the audience was in their 20s. Nearly five decades after her debut, songs such as ¡°Last Summer Whisper¡± and ¡°I Can¡¯t Stop the Loneliness¡± continue finding new fans.
Trump says ¡®nothing¡¯s changed¡¯ on Taiwan. But his words belie a big shift.
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to the press aboard Air Force One en route to the U.S. following his official visit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, on Friday.
Japan¡¯s new emissions trading program: Key climate tool or paper tiger?
A production line at a Nippon Steel plate rolling mill in Kimitsu, Chiba Prefecture, in May 2025.
For all its nonsense, ¡®Mystery Arena¡¯ is weirdly entertaining
Afro-wigged host Momotaro Kabayama (Toshiaki Karasawa) presides over the eponymous game show in Yukihiko Tsutsumi¡¯s ¡°Mystery Arena.¡±

Podcast

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

Longform

Anri says younger overseas listeners first surprised her during a 2023 performance in Los Angeles, where most of the audience was in their 20s. Nearly five decades after her debut, songs such as ¡°Last Summer Whisper¡± and ¡°I Can¡¯t Stop the Loneliness¡± continue finding new fans.
Before city pop went global, there was Anri
By Patrick St. Michel

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