19 Feb 2025 ‘Airpocalypse’ Now: Vietnam at Crossroads of Progress and Pollution Nguyen Khac Giang Vietnam’s capital, Hanoi, is ranked as one of the world’s most polluted cities in 2025. This dubious honour highlights the country’s need to balance rapid economic development with preserving the environment. Environment Pollution
18 Feb 2025 Ominous Political Storm Gathers over Thai-Cambodian Dispute in Gulf of Thailand Termsak Chalermpalanupap The Paetongtarn Administration is following Thaksin Shinawatra’s advice in preparing to resume negotiations with Phnom Penh on conflicting maritime claims in the Gulf of Thailand. Opponents of the Shinawatra family suspect a collusion between Thaksin and Hun Sen to speed up a deal on joint exploration. Cambodia Thai Politics Thailand
18 Feb 2025 Outcome of Recent Thai Provincial Elections Heralds Tighter Race in Next General Election Termsak Chalermpalanupap Thailand’s three most significant political parties have some tough lessons to learn from the recent provincial races in preparation for the next general election. Coalition politics is likely to endure, regardless. Thai Elections Thai Politics Thailand
18 Feb 2025 Trump’s Territorial Ambitions Send Tremors Beyond the Western Hemisphere Hoang Thi Ha US President Donald Trump's rhetoric in past weeks has sparked a chain reaction of alarm in Southeast Asia. If his words become deeds, the region's uneven but evident bedrock of trust in the US, carefully built up since World War Two's end, could slowly turn to dust. ASEAN-US Relations Donald Trump Southeast Asia US
17 Feb 2025 Timor-Leste Bets on Online Gambling Isabelle Chua If the Timorese government can manage the potential negatives arising from allowing online gambling to be hosted in Timor-Leste, the returns from this bet could uplift the country’s fledgling economy. Economy Gambling Online Timor-Leste
17 Feb 2025 To Lam’s Pragmatic Pitch to Vietnam’s Youth: Economic Prosperity, Political Control Dien Nguyen An Luong Compared to their Southeast Asian peers, Vietnamese youth are more economically optimistic but politically disengaged. These attitudes concur with pragmatism of the country’s top leader To Lam, which focuses on material prosperity while calibrating civic freedoms to regime imperatives. Vietnam Vietnamese Demography Vietnamese Politics
14 Feb 2025 Trump 2.0 and the US-Philippines Alliance: Consistency and Change Julio S. Amador III The US-Philippines alliance is expected to be reinforced in the Trump 2.0 administration. It will, however, be tested given existing regional flashpoints and the need to follow through commitments pledged in previous years. Philippine Politics Philippine-U.S. Relations Philippines US
14 Feb 2025 How A Ceasefire In Ukraine Could Affect Asian Security Daljit Singh A ceasefire in Ukraine could enable Washington to strengthen its deterrence network in the Indo-Pacific. But this depends on whether Trump hews to traditional balance of power considerations. Russia Ukraine US
13 Feb 2025 Indonesia’s Social Media Usage Law Might Not Protect Children Eka Nugraha Putra The Indonesian government’s move to safeguard children from online harm is laudable. However, it overlooks their wellbeing and trains them to be digitally illiterate by assuming the solution lies in a general law. Indonesia Indonesian Politics Social Media
13 Feb 2025 Reconciling Indonesia’s Food Sufficiency Ambitions with Climate Commitments Melinda Martinus As Indonesia forges ahead with plans to become an advanced economy, an honest reckoning needs to occur, to ensure that it does not squander its vast environmental resources for short-term gain. Climate Change Environment Food Security Indonesia Indonesian Economy
