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This Week in Asia /
Opinion
Related Topics:
China Briefing
The View
History
The West was never the whole world. It’s time to move on
As Asia reclaims its roots, the burden of reinvention now falls on the West. Its brief era of supremacy was a historical aberration.
16 May 2026 - 10:00AM
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China-Philippines relations
Asian Angle
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3 reasons Marcos’ South China Sea energy gambit won’t work
10 May 2026 - 12:00PM
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US, Israel war on Iran
Opinion
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Trump’s threats against Iran are historically illiterate
9 May 2026 - 3:30PM
Japan
Asian Angle
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Why Japan-China ties can benefit from promoting people-to-people exchanges
Filling the information gap through direct contact between the two peoples can help improve both countries’ public images and ease tensions.
3 May 2026 - 9:00AM
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi (left) shakes hands with Chinese President Xi Jinping ahead of their talks in Gyeongju, South Korea, on October 31, 2025. Photo: Kyodo
Thailand
Asian Angle
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A year after corporal punishment ban, Thailand needs to curb resurgence
Two school incidents show corporal punishment remains prevalent, and Thai authorities must strengthen accountability to prevent a recurrence.
2 May 2026 - 12:00PM
US, Israel war on Iran
Opinion
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Trump’s oil crisis is accelerating the end of the fossil fuel era
Ironically for president ‘drill, baby, drill’, this crisis may prove an irreversible tipping point for clean energy.
26 Apr 2026 - 3:00PM
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War and conflict
Opinion
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Blinding the world with lies makes peacemaking an impossible task
From Iran to the Horn of Africa, disinformation is killing diplomacy. Mediators need facts, not state-sponsored fictions.
25 Apr 2026 - 11:00AM
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A satellite image shows smoke rising from an oil refinery in Tuapse, Russia, on Monday after an overnight strike claimed by Ukraine’s military. Photo: Planet Labs PBC/Reuters
United States
Asian Angle
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The Thucydides Trap is a lie created to justify a US-China war
Ancient Greece offers no lessons for Asia. The Global South must stop letting America’s war machine write history.
19 Apr 2026 - 1:30PM
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US, Israel war on Iran
Opinion
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Passage through the Strait of Hormuz is a right in war and peace
Neutral ships have a legal right of passage, even in war. Singapore has defended international law, which provides for a stable world order.
18 Apr 2026 - 1:30PM
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Asean
Asian Angle
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Doubts about Trump strain Southeast Asia’s US-China balancing act
An increasingly unpredictable Washington is making the region’s traditional hedging strategy harder to sustain.
12 Apr 2026 - 12:00PM
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Vietnam
Asian Angle
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Who is Vietnam’s new Prime Minister Le Minh Hung?
The ex-central banker has the credentials to succeed. Whether he has the political capital remains to be seen.
11 Apr 2026 - 1:00PM
Le Minh Hung (centre) attends a swearing-in ceremony in Hanoi on Tuesday after being elected as Vietnam’s new prime minister. Photo: Vietnam News Agency/Xinhua
US, Israel war on Iran
Opinion
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Why the ‘Gate of Tears’ may yet make the whole world weep
With the Strait of Hormuz effectively closed, any attacks on the Bab el-Mandeb Strait will pile further pressure on global supply chains.
5 Apr 2026 - 12:00PM
US, Israel war on Iran
Asian Angle
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Hormuz is sending Southeast Asia a warning – and we can no longer ignore it
The crisis has shown we must invest in renewables rather than staying in a fossil fuel comfort zone.
4 Apr 2026 - 12:00PM
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US, Israel war on Iran
Opinion
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One rule for Israel and another for Iran risks nuclear disaster
Israel is believed to have some 80 to 90 nuclear weapons. Iran has none. Such double standards are unsustainable.
29 Mar 2026 - 11:30AM
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The Philippines
Asian Angle
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The Philippine military must transform, not just modernise
Changes to doctrine and force structure are needed to realise the armed forces’ dream of becoming a 21st century military.
28 Mar 2026 - 11:00AM
Filipino soldiers take part in counter-landing live fire drills during the annual US-Philippines “Balikatan” joint military exercise in Palawan on April 28, 2025. Photo: AFP
Indonesia
Opinion
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Indonesia’s new aircraft carrier is more vanity project than war machine
The jet-less carrier might buy Jakarta a seat at the elite table, but it offers no advantage in modern naval warfare.
22 Mar 2026 - 10:00AM
Malaysia
Asian Angle
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Malaysia’s LGBTQ crackdowns aren’t hypocrisy, they’re politics
Anwar’s government isn’t failing its ideals. It’s navigating a reality where Malay-Muslim legitimacy dictates the limits of social change.
21 Mar 2026 - 11:30AM
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Asean
Opinion
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Underwater and unprotected: why Asean and the EU must secure subsea lifelines
With global data at risk from hybrid threats, Southeast Asia and Europe need to look past declarations to secure our shared data arteries.
15 Mar 2026 - 12:00PM
Workers install a submarine communications cable in western France. Photo: AFP
Myanmar
Opinion
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Myanmar’s junta staged an election. It couldn’t stage legitimacy
A closer look at the vote raises doubts about whether the generals can hold the country hostage in the long term.
14 Mar 2026 - 12:00PM
Thailand
Asian Angle
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How to win an election in Thailand: stage a rebrand, rely on rural votes
Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul put Bhumjaithai’s technocrats centre stage, while letting provincial barons run the real campaign.
8 Mar 2026 - 12:00PM
Australia
Opinion
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Australia needs to make its stance on the Iran attacks known
By refusing to condemn these legally baseless strikes, the Albanese government risks choosing ‘might is right’ over the UN Charter.
7 Mar 2026 - 12:00PM
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Artificial intelligence
Asian Angle
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Southeast Asia needs AI sovereignty – the Grok scandal proved it
From Singapore’s SEA-LION to Malaysia’s ILMU, Southeast Asian nations aim to build AI that reflects their own languages, cultures and values.
1 Mar 2026 - 12:00PM
A link to the Grok website is seen in a social media post. Grok released a feature in December that allowed users to generate non-consensual sexualised images of women and children. Photo: Getty Images
US-ally trade wars
Opinion
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Southeast Asia, do not mistake Trump’s tariff defeat for a reprieve
One court loss won’t end the trade wars. But if ‘Peak Trump’ has arrived, the region’s negotiating hand may have just got stronger.
28 Feb 2026 - 12:00PM
Artificial intelligence
Opinion
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Who will save the world from a US-China AI arms race?
Unrestrained military AI could doom us all. The window for a global middle-power alliance to rein in the superpowers is closing fast.
21 Feb 2026 - 1:00PM
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Cambodia
Opinion
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Cambodia’s scam factory survivors find no escape in freedom
A government crackdown freed thousands, but with no passports or support, survivors have simply traded captivity for destitution.
15 Feb 2026 - 12:00PM
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