Southeast Asia’s only nuclear power plant, completed four decades ago in Bataan, about 40 miles from the Philippine capital Manila, was built in the 1970s but left idle due to safety concerns and corr…
Microsoft Expands Data Center Footprint in Johor
Microsoft is increasing its investment in Malaysian data centers with the purchase of another plot of land in Johor. Its data center arm, Microsoft Payments Malaysia, acquired a 91,249-square-meter si…
Maybank : EV transition is reshaping Malaysia’s automotive industry
Maybank Investment Bank said Tuesday that Malaysia’s automotive industry is transitioning, driven by the rise of electric vehicle (EV) players, with current investments focused on downstream areas lik…
Laos Is Turning to Its Neighbors to Loosen China’s Economic Grip
Laos has a debt problem. By some estimates, the country’s public debt has swelled to more than $15.9 billion, exceeding its GDP. And ballooning debt is simply the most striking symptom of a wider, pro…
The Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone, Explained
An agreement on the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone (JS-SEZ) was announced in early January, after several months of negotiations. The project encompasses a large part of the southern Malaysian …
China and Thailand To Be Linked Via High-Speed Rail
Thailand expects to complete its inaugural high-speed rail network by 2030, establishing a direct link to China through Laos, a project long heralded by officials as pivotal for enhancing bilateral re…
How Can Agriculture Contribute to Peace?
Agricultural development and food security play a key role in strengthening peace in fragile societies. According to Ambassador George Moose, Acting President and CEO of United States Institute for Pe…
Bangladesh and Pakistan Are Changing South Asia’s Geopolitical Landscape
Since the overthrow of Sheikh Hasina’s authoritarian rule in August of 2024, two shifts in the region are reshaping its geopolitical environment. The first shift has been the steady deterioration in I…
Enhancing ASEAN’s digital competitiveness
As ASEAN accelerates its digital transformation, the region faces a critical challenge: a widening gap between industry demand for skilled digital professionals and the availability of talent. This ta…
The Quad Under Trump 2.0: Early Signs of Shift Amid Continuity
One of the Trump administration’s first foreign policy acts, less than a day after the inauguration, was convening the Quad Foreign Ministers’ Meeting (FMM) on January 21. The FMM involved wide-rangin…