Lye Liang Fook
China has filed reports on environmental protection in the South China Sea to counter the Philippines’ claim of severe damage to the marine ecosystem at Scarborough Shoal and thwart Manila’s effort to file a legal case against China. But Beijing’s efforts provoke some serious questions about its motivations.
Helena Varkkey|Michelle Miller|Matthew Ashfold
Carbon-rich peat ecosystems hold great potential to mitigate climate change, and help meet Southeast Asian national climate targets. The increased priority and action on peatlands must be continued from COP28 into this November’s COP29.
Mahfud MD
This article is from a speech delivered by former Coordinating Minister for Politics, Law and Security and recent vice-presidential candidate Professor Mahfud MD at ISEAS on 4 July 2024
Eugene R.L. Tan|William Choong
The UK might be scaling down its footprint into the Indo-Pacific. This is a bad idea.
Norshahril Saat
Sarawak and Brunei, as neighbouring entities, offer interesting insights through the divergence in their pluralist and conservative trajectories. This Long Read considers the significance of political culture, demography, and religious elites’ training as factors contributing to contemporary trends.
Surachanee Sriyai
The Myanmar junta’s ban on Facebook and curbs on internet access have compelled citizens to use virtual private networks (VPNs), including free but potentially malicious VPNs. Banning VPNs has made things even worse for Myanmar’s citizens.
Aninda Dewayanti|Muhammad Fajar
Environmental activism remains a cottage industry for the youth who champion Earth’s cause in Indonesia. Besides financial pull, they will need organisational evolution before any significant green movement can break the cosy ties between state and dirty business.
Paul Chambers
The Pheu Thai-led government has allowed defence expenditure to creep upwards despite fiscal pressures. This is a clever ploy to keep the country’s generals onside.
Julia Lau|Maria Monica Wihardja
In Indonesia’s presidential election in February, candidates’ failure to distinguish themselves in persona and policies hurt their campaigns.
Hafiizh Hashim|Lye Liang Fook|Souliya Mounnarath|Nguyen Khac Giang|Yohanes Sulaiman|Aletheia Kerygma B. Valenciano
In March 2013, Chinese President Xi Jinping introduced the concept of building a “community with a shared future for mankind” as a central tenet of his “Thought on Diplomacy” with Chinese characteristics. This ambitious vision encompasses more recent programmes such as the Global Development Initiative (GDI), the Global Security Initiative (GSI), the Global Civilisation Initiative (GCI), and the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). To date, seven ASEAN countries, excluding Singapore, Brunei, and the Philippines, have endorsed the initiative.