Asia-Pacific updates, as they break.
Live news deskFollow @indopacnews
Staff Writer
Yuko Murase writes IndoPac briefs on diplomacy, technology policy, and political change across the Asia-Pacific region.
Coverage areas
Topics this writer covers.
Article archive
26 stories
India’s ambition to grow its navy past 200 ships within the next decade has taken on fresh urgency as China expands the world’s largest naval fleet and Pakistan adds advanced Chinese-built attack submarines, heightening New Delhi’s anxieties in the Indian Ocean. Analysts see this month’s commissioning of the stealth frigate INS Mahendragiri and submarine…
Maritime Security / South Asia / Northeast AsiaAustralia has secured the Nakamal Agreement with Vanuatu, but at what diplomatic cost? Siobhan McDonnell examines the pressure tactics used, the one-sided obligations imposed on Vanuatu and the goodwill Canberra may have sacrificed for a single treaty. About the author/s Siobhan McDonnell Siobhan McDonnell is an Associate Professor at the Crawford School of…
Diplomacy & Statecraft / Pacific Islands / Australia & New ZealandBoth nations have accused the other for instigating the incident at Second Thomas Shoal, which has overshadowed this week's ASEAN meetings in Manila.
Maritime Security / Northeast Asia / Southeast AsiaJapan now needs to formulate its response.
Maritime Security / Northeast AsiaIsrael's foreign minister says the Nauru embassy would be in Jerusalem.
Diplomacy & Statecraft / Pacific IslandsIndonesia has further reduced its budget for President Prabowo Subianto’s signature free school meals programme to 229 trillion rupiah (US$12.81 billion) from 268 trillion rupiah and more cuts are possible, senior officials running the project said on Tuesday. The programme is Prabowo’s most important and expensive election campaign pledge and has been…
Politics & Governance / Southeast AsiaNvidia’s H200 chips, a step down from its most advanced Blackwell line, have resumed imports into China, albeit in small quantities. Meanwhile, China’s chip exports nearly doubled in the first half of this year. Much of these exports are mature logic integrated circuits for applications in consumer electronics and automotive sectors. While the US is the…
Technology & Chips / Northeast AsiaChina has rejected Japanese reports that a PLA Navy ship conducted a live-fire drill within its exclusive economic zone on the weekend, saying Tokyo’s claims to the zone are illegal. Japan’s defence ministry said on Tuesday that the People’s Liberation Army vessel was one of three conducting exercises with a Russian navy ship in the Pacific on Sunday. It…
Politics & Governance / Northeast AsiaThe “disappearance” of Miraj Sheikh has become more than a missing-person case. It has emerged as the first major test of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) government’s pledge to break decisively with the human rights practices that defined the final years of ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s rule. Before investigators have established what…
Diplomacy & Statecraft / South AsiaSouth Korea has said it wants to establish a new semiconductor hub in its southwest within four years, but local opposition to the project's massive power and water needs is set to be among its biggest obstacles.
Technology & Chips / Northeast AsiaThe Solomon Islands prime minister arrives in Washington for high-level US talks ahead of a meeting with Japanese prime minister in Tokyo.
Pacific Islands / Pacific Islands / Northeast AsiaThe law forbids publicly damaging, removing, or defacing a Japanese flag in a manner likely to cause others “extreme discomfort or disgust.”
Law, Sanctions & Policy / Northeast AsiaAustralia needs to talk less about critical-mineral supply chains and more about specific minerals. Generic discussions about supply-chain resilience have become a substitute for strategic thinking. They encourage governments to speak in broad concepts while ...
Diplomacy & Statecraft / Australia & New ZealandFiji's public debt is set to hit 85% of GDP, and its new tourism tax won't fix the problem. Satish Chand warns that without broader tax reform and spending restraint, a painful fiscal reckoning lies ahead. About the author/s Satish Chand Satish Chand was the Chair of the National Security and Defence Review Taskforce for the Fijian Government. He is a…
Economy & Markets / Pacific IslandsNewly declassified US intelligence records show Chinese actors collected or acquired voter information covering millions of Americans and that Beijing developed capabilities that could be used to influence political opinion, but the documents do not substantiate US President Donald Trump’s claims that China stole the records of 220 million voters or…
Politics & Governance / Northeast Asia"They just don't keep promises, no matter what. Even if they make a promise, they flip it right away," said Hideki Makihara.
Diplomacy & Statecraft / Northeast Asia / South AsiaNuclear reactor exports are becoming an increasingly important arena of strategic competition.
Energy & Infrastructure / Northeast Asia / Southeast AsiaAnalysis: The termination of Tokelau's participation with the eight-member Parties to the Nauru Agreement has been shrouded in mystery, writes Giff Johnson .
Maritime Security / Pacific Islands / Australia & New ZealandPapua New Guinea's foreign minister says this administrative action underscores commitment to honouring the country's foundational One-China Policy.
Trade & Supply Chains / Northeast Asia / Pacific IslandsASEAN special envoy Ma. Theresa Lazaro held separate talks with military-backed negotiators and six rebel groups in Pattaya earlier this week.
Diplomacy & Statecraft / Southeast AsiaThe revision comes amid rapid technological innovation, including the launch of U.S. startup Anthropic's Claude Mythos.
Law, Sanctions & Policy / Northeast AsiaFrom floods to heatwaves, cascading climate disasters expose mounting vulnerabilities demanding coordinated scientific and policy responses.
Diplomacy & Statecraft / South AsiaAs a key reason for the initiative, Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi cited growing responsibilities as the ministry builds up defense ties with like-minded nations.
Diplomacy & Statecraft / Northeast AsiaThe Taliban has issued a decree that further enables child marriages in Afghanistan and restricts women’s and girls’ ability to leave such unions. As the repression accelerates, Australia should build on its record of holding ...
Law, Sanctions & Policy / South Asia / Australia & New ZealandTuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi claims government plans to investigate him and two senior members of parliament for treason and defamation have stalled due to a lack of evidence.
Politics & Governance / Diplomacy & Statecraft / Pacific IslandsThe Papua New Guinea Correctional Service confirms three prisoners have been killed in the Western Highlands after they tried to "jump over the fence" at Baisu Correctional Institution Services.
Energy & Infrastructure / Pacific Islands