A heatwave sweeping across Southeast Asia is making offices even warmer, as workers continue to adjust to energy-saving measures put in place by governments due to the war in Iran. Many countries have imposed temperature controls at government workplaces since the war began, among other measures to conserve energy. As the prolonged shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz drains energy reserves, relief does not look to be coming any time soon, with parts of the region set to bake in abnormally hot...
The objective is to gather intelligence about victims detained in scam compounds in Laos, Cambodia, and Myanmar
Watch a cheap commercial drone destroy a battle tank on the frontlines in Ukraine, or a cut-price Iranian Shahed menace Tel Aviv, then ask yourself why Southeast Asia’s defence ministries are suddenly very interested in unmanned aerial vehicles. The answer was on full display last week at the Defence Services Asia (DSA) exhibition in Kuala Lumpur, where vendors from Abu Dhabi to Pretoria were chasing deals in one of the global arms trade’s hottest emerging markets. “There is huge demand from the...
As Southeast Asia’s tourism sector takes a hit from the Iran war, a pivot to serving as alternative flight hubs may save the industry. The region’s major airlines are seeing an increase in demand for European routes as travellers avoid Middle Eastern hubs amid disruptive drone and missile attacks, according to Reuters. Singapore Airlines (SIA) joins other major Asian carriers, such as Cathay Pacific, Korean Air and Qantas Airways, in posting strong performances on Europe flights in March. SIA...
Governments across Southeast Asia have been banking on work-from-home arrangements for civil servants to ease the sting of soaring energy costs triggered by the Iran war, but analysts say the maths is messier than it may first appear. Indonesia estimates its Friday work-from-home policy, introduced on April 1, will save around 6.2 trillion rupiah (US$361.5 million) in state fuel subsidies and nearly 10 times that amount in total consumption. The Philippines has similarly introduced a four-day...
For Southeast Asia, trust in Japan runs deepest where China presses hardest and breaks down where neutrality is a point of pride. Analysts say that dynamic, revealed in an annual survey released earlier this month, explains why Vietnam and the Philippines both see the East Asian nation as a trusted partner while Indonesia, a country that has long prized non-alignment, is uncomfortable with Tokyo’s deepening embrace of Washington. Trust in Tokyo is highest in the Philippines (77.3 per cent),...
Since America launched its “major combat operation” against Iran, several Nato allies have distanced themselves from Washington. Now America also risks losing ground in strategically important Southeast Asia to China. Could it face an erosion of influence similar to that suffered by Russia in Central Asia as a result of its “special military operation” in Ukraine? Soon after US President Donald Trump launched massive air and missile strikes on Iran on February 28, it became clear Washington...
Malaysian comedian Rizal van Geyzel keeps his three children – aged six, 14 and 15 – off social media. He calls it a “gateway drug” to fake news, pornography, stalkers and doom-scrolling. “Do I risk them resenting me? Sure, but these are the sacrifices of parents for their children’s mental health and physical safety,” the 43-year-old said. Across Southeast Asia, governments are increasingly siding with parents like him. Indonesia last month became the first country in the region to bar...
Japan has pledged US$10 billion to its Asian neighbours in energy support, in what analysts say is a strategic bid to counter China’s regional influence and position itself as a reliable partner as the Iran war upends global oil markets and supply chains. However, one observer argued that the move’s impact might be limited, given Japan’s inability to alter the ground realities in the Middle East and Southeast Asian countries’ instinct for strategic hedging over picking sides. Unveiled by...
Japan remains the most trusted power among Southeast Asian countries, even as it seeks to amend its pacifist constitution and continues its military build-up. However, Tokyo would need to be transparent on its motives and assure others that its military-related actions would contribute to regional security, according to analysts. In the latest annual survey conducted by the Singapore-based ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute, Japan retained its ranking as the most trusted power in the region, with 65.6...
For years, Southeast Asian countries have preferred to avoid taking sides between China and the United States. This year’s State of Southeast Asia survey shows that this approach still holds, but a more contested geostrategic environment is making it harder to sustain. The region continues to feel uneasy about China’s entrenched influence, is increasingly troubled by US leadership under President Donald Trump and is more conscious of Asean’s institutional constraints. The weakening of confidence...
Harvest-ready rice fields are lying idle and farmers are deciding whether to skip planting for the coming season, as spiking fuel and fertiliser costs from the war in the Middle East hit one of the world’s biggest rice-growing regions. Across Southeast Asia, tens of millions of smallholders are struggling to find affordable crop nutrients as well as the diesel needed to run tractors, irrigation pumps and rice planters. In Thailand, some farmers are leaving the crop in the ground as it is too...
Later this month, Indonesian cinema-goers will finally get to see what audiences in Berlin saw in February: Jokor Anwar’s Ghost in the Cell. The horror-comedy, which had its world premiere at the prestigious Berlin International Film Festival, has been celebrated by influential trade magazine Variety for rising above mere “escapist entertainment” to channel societal anxieties about corruption and environmental destruction. Yet it is only the latest example of Southeast Asia’s creative moment...