Asia & the Pacific

Historian Rana Mitter on the new balance of power between Washington and Beijing.

What Curaçao figured out about World Cup soccer that India still hasn’t.

A tale of two readouts.

The BJP decisively ousted longtime leaders in the state, but last-minute changes to the voter rolls have fueled allegations of foul play.

The group’s foreign ministers convene in New Delhi amid global tensions.

Forced assimilation is costing China dearly.

Diplomacy of the highest quality is more essential than ever.

Trouble is brewing as norms against war dissolve.

The secretary of state may face an uphill battle during his visit to New Delhi this month.

A coordinated response from the grouping did not emerge from its Cebu summit.

Western-dominated insurance premiums can choke off Beijing’s oil supplies more effectively than warships can.

India’s ruling party got a boost from four state elections this week—and unseated a longtime rival.

U.S. guarantees have not shielded Indonesia, the Philippines, and Vietnam from economic shock.

By pulling Seoul into its rivalry with Beijing, Washington is undermining the alliance’s core mission.

Frustration bubbles with the United States ahead of the leaders’ gathering in Cebu.

Kim Jong Un is orchestrating his daughter’s ascent through a campaign of maternal statecraft.

Malaysia becomes the first country to cancel its tariff deal with the White House.

The Iran war is choking supply of the world’s most expensive spice.

The Section 301 case outlined by U.S. trade officials is neither coherent nor defensible.

For Iran’s Sunni admirers, resistance remains the appeal.

As New Delhi feels the crunch, diplomacy in Abu Dhabi hints at expanding green cooperation.

Why the World Bank’s quiet decision to move the South Asian country to its Middle East column is more than just a bureaucratic footnote.

Gita Gopinath on how countries can make themselves more resilient.

In a world of disorder, the bloc’s boring stability is suddenly attractive.

Washington has no good options for evacuating Americans in a crisis.

An apparently off-the-cuff observation sparked consternation across the region.

Beijing is ready to take risks as Tokyo backs Taiwan.

It is hard to imagine the grouping enduring another two and a half years of Trump.

As U.S.-Iran talks falter, the political and economic risks are rising for Islamabad.

Aung San Suu Kyi’s fate remains uncertain.

I’ve never seen a negotiation that’s quite like this one.

Conflict with Iran hurts American wallets, but it’s far more devastating for people in the global south.

Anthropic’s latest AI model has kick-started a new debate. 

Beijing’s response to Washington’s chaos is not triumphalism but a patient campaign to win the future.

A first round of U.S.-Iran talks didn’t lead to a deal, but Islamabad wants to stay at the table.

The Indonesian president visits Moscow—and signs a U.S. defense agreement.

From Jordan to Nepal, solutions to urban water woes are leaving the countryside angry and parched.

The president is betting economic pressure can do what bombs couldn’t.

As Islamabad hosts peace talks, it’s also balancing a security pact with Riyadh.

Government paralysis is freezing budgets and wrecking public trust.

The official appointment of coup leader Min Aung Hlaing as president is likely to hasten a shift within the bloc.

Countries are lining up for military deals with Kyiv.

The war began without a strategy for victory. The peace has no formula, either.

China sees the potential for conflict as a tragedy, not an opportunity.

A key meeting with the Taiwanese opposition signals a different model of cross-strait stability.

The truce remains fragile, but Islamabad has offered to host peace talks.

Myanmar will be hit worst.

The closure of the Strait of Hormuz has left thousands of Indian sailors at risk.

As Islamabad positions itself as a mediator in the Iran war, New Delhi is sidelined.

Blocked fertilizer shipments plus La Niña spell trouble for farmers around the world.

The Iran war has confirmed how little Washington cares for its ally’s welfare.

Former officials were arrested over the weekend in connection with a crackdown on protesters last year.

As the world watches Iran, Pakistan and Afghanistan clash.

After a string of political victories, the military regime might now grapple with fresh upheaval.

A Kremlin-backed fintech company is linked to massive trade in dual-use goods.

The Philippines has seen one of the world’s sharpest increase in petrol prices.

Migrants are seeing flights and jobs vanish.

Indigenous knowledge is helping conservationists manage delicate ecologies.

President Sadyr Japarov has stifled opposition. Now he’s going after his former right-hand man.

A new party takes office with a mandate—and high expectations from the Gen Z movement that propelled it to power.

Though it might seem unlikely, the role would make sense for Islamabad.

A strategic location coupled with a close U.S. partnership makes for an attractive military target.

Beijing fears a failed state on its border.

Even once the war ends, it will take time to get back to normal energy flows.

Winter Olympic success brings funding hopes to Southern Hemisphere athletes.

The strike on a Kabul hospital was the deadliest single incident in the conflict so far.

Sanae Takaichi committing to Taiwan’s defense would help keep the peace.

The bloc isn’t a geopolitical alliance, and it shouldn’t be expected to function like one.

Indonesia, for one, has a bloody history of fuel-related riots.

Presidents cannot ignore the long-term costs of dismissing the truth in pursuit of national security.

Modi’s government faces increasing domestic dissent when it comes to working with the Trump administration.

Plus, more international fiction releases in March.

Washington has yet to recognize that mobility is an essential part of regional security.

Irregular migration needs a compassionate and careful approach.

Spiraling natural gas prices leave both countries exposed.

The new chapter in defense planning seems like a direct response to Trump’s Golden Dome.

A poll of IR scholars reveals strong opposition to the conflict and fears about its risks.

Ahead of elections, calls to reinstate the king and bring an end to secularism have grown louder.

The T20 World Cup has underscored that New Delhi is a schoolyard bully.

Mark Carney’s tour of the Indo-Pacific this week is a rousing show of defiance, but it may have unintended effects.

Indonesia’s president offers to facilitate negotiations after U.S. and Israeli strikes.

War in Iran could pose instability risks as its neighbors to the east escalate their conflict.

In India, a new caste census risks making prejudice permanent.

The Indian leader has made a strategic bet on the bilateral relationship.

Beijing is less likely to risk an invasion while Trump is facilitating its pressure campaign against Taipei.

New Delhi wants to play the role of a bridging power between the West and the rest.

Washington is trying to build up Armenia and Azerbaijan as regional allies.

With a generational shift in power possible, the old guard is fighting back.

The country’s military is becoming desperate for troops—and may eventually force women to serve.

The trial has already become a domestic political football.

The life sentence for Yoon Suk-yeol’s coup attempt should be a model for other states.

The Taliban government can’t protect Chinese miners from local hostility.

“Kokuho” offers an artful meditation on a country in flux.

Kurt Campbell: “The president clearly wants short-term deals.”

Brazil’s president hopes to cooperate on AI, critical minerals, and more.

To understand Trump’s approach to the world, look at the leaders he resembles.

The AI models are American, but the food that feeds the beast is being enriched in India.

Some other Southeast Asian countries are steering clear.

Trump’s approach has done damage to bilateral ties that won’t so easily be repaired.

An “America First” export strategy complicates efforts to obtain U.S.-made weapons.