Australia

A couple outside their home in New South Wales in January: A state inquiry found that climate change was "clearly" a factor in last season's devastating fires.
Asia Insight

As fire season looms, Australia fears recurring nightmare

Climate change spurs race for new strategy: 'We have to be better'

1 September 2020
Shinzo Abe shakes hands with Malcom Turnbull in Sydney in January 2017: even after Donald Trump pulled out, we had agreed to keep TPP alive by the remaining countries.
Opinion

This is why the world will miss Shinzo Abe

His unique skill set greatly increased Japan's global stature and influence

29 August 2020
Narendra Modi, center, and other leaders shake hands at the third RCEP summit in Bangkok in November 2019: hope of India's return has not entirely faded.
Opinion

India's return to RCEP is in everyone's interests

New Delhi concerned over opening its markets but should recognize strategic gains

26 August 2020
India pulled out of the RCEP negotiations over concerns that the pact would hurt the South Asian country's domestic producers. (Nikkei montage/source photos by Reuters and Rie Ishii)
Trade

Talks on Asian trade megadeal RCEP resume in COVID shadow

India likely to remain absent as Vietnam leads push for year-end agreement

26 August 2020
Lion Dairy's Pura milk: Kirin decided to sell the Australian unit after a review of underperforming operations. (Photo courtesy of Lion Dairy & Drinks)
Business deals

Kirin looks for non-Chinese buyers for Australian dairy unit

Deal with Mengniu scrapped after Canberra says it would be 'contrary to national interest'

26 August 2020
A bottle of Australian wine at a bar in Beijing: China accounts for about 40% of Australia's wine exports.
International relations

China locks onto Australian farm imports as relations fray

Tensions have escalated since Canberra's push for coronavirus probe

24 August 2020
A truck hauls coal out of Pakistan's Tharparkar region, the world's seventh largest coal deposit. 
International relations

China pivots to old ally Pakistan for coal after Australia spat

Thar field designed for domestic power but might increase Beijing's options

19 August 2020
A rare earth mine in China's Inner Mongolia. China is said to control 90% of heavy rare earth minerals.
Commodities

US-Australia bid for 'China free' rare earth faces challenges

Mining the minerals is seen as akin to buying a whole cow for the sirloin

18 August 2020
The work-from-home lifestyle brought on by COVID-19 has made Byron Bay real estate among the most coveted in Australia.
Business trends

Australian rural property booms as homebuyers flee cities

Coronavirus pandemic spurs urban residents to reassess their lifestyles

17 August 2020
Rio Tinto chief executive Jean-Sebastien Jacques, pictured in June 2016, admitted that he did not know the cultural significance of the site before his company blew it up. 
Opinion

Rio Tinto chief must resign after Aboriginal site demolition

Pension funds should divest after mining giant destroyed culturally significant caves

15 August 2020
Japan Post looks to sell off parts of Australian logistics company Toll. Japan Post acquired Toll Holdings in 2015.
Transportation

Japan Post considers sale of Australian logistics business

Toll weighed down by domestic delivery and international forwarding losses

13 August 2020
An iron ore mine in Western Australia. The country exports the bulk of its iron ore to China.
Trade

Australia's soaring exports to China at risk in diplomatic rift

Trade to suffer unless Canberra eases criticism: Communist Party-backed paper

7 August 2020
The Black Hornet 2 remotely piloted aircraft system, controlled by a member of the U.K.'s Royal Marines: The pocket-sized, camera-equipped drone is a reconnaissance tool for militaries and law enforcement.
International relations

China's rise forges new bond between Japan and Five Eyes

Intelligence sharing and TPP membership seen as next steps in weaving relationship

7 August 2020
Australia recognizes that a strong China will be an enduring feature of the Asian strategic system.
Opinion

China's rise must be managed, not contested. Australia knows how.

Liberal powers need to counter Beijing's tactic of picking nations off one by one

7 August 2020
A man walks on July 30 in Melbourne, where the new COVID-19 lockdown permits residents to leave home only for work, exercise and essential outings.
Coronavirus

Australians fret over cuts to JobKeeper and JobSeeker COVID aid

'It's going to be worse than ever,' warns recipient as PM eyes deficit

1 August 2020
Australia wants tech platforms to negotiate "in good faith" with news outlets.
1 August 2020
Indonesian feminist writer Intan Paramaditha. "There are lots of women authors back in Indonesia," she says, "but the gatekeepers for recognition and awards are all men." (Courtesy of Intan Paramaditha) 
Arts

Indonesian travel novel a tribute to open borders

'The Wandering' attacks male privilege, but extols a bygone era of nomadic freedom

31 July 2020
Singapore's contact tracing app TraceTogether: the government struggles to get even 25% of citizens to download the app. (Photo by Kentaro Iwamoto)
Opinion

Failed COVID-19 tracing apps must be abandoned to restore public trust

Asia has led the way with surveillance technology, but citizens remain unconvinced

31 July 2020
The flags of the U.S. and Australia are seen outside the U.S. Department of State in Washington, D.C. (Photo courtesy of the State Department)
US-China tensions

US ropes Australia into coalition to curb China's rise

Asia-Pacific faces growing pressure to take sides in great decoupling

29 July 2020
When British explorer James Cook landed on Australia in 1770, humans had already been living there for 60,000 years. (Photo by Geoff Hiscock)
Tea Leaves

Protests highlight Australia's black-white divide

Despite diverse population, improving status of indigenous Aborigines is country's greatest challenge

29 July 2020
From right, U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne and Australian Defense Minister Linda Reynolds take part in a joint news conference at the State Department on July 28. (Photo courtesy of the U.S. State Department)
US-China tensions

US and Australia propose 'network of alliances' to curb China

Five Eyes, Quad and ASEAN tapped as guardians of Indo-Pacific security

29 July 2020
A submarine-cable laying ship in the Caribbean Sea. Chile picked a route that would take the cable to New Zealand and Australia, not Shanghai.
29 July 2020
A Lynas mine in Western Australia: Rare-earth elements are mined worldwide, but refining is largely handled in China. (Photo courtesy of Lynas)
27 July 2020
A still image of the disputed Spratly Islands in the South China Sea provided by the U.S. Navy in 2015. 
South China Sea

China shoots across US bow with South China Sea drills

Weeklong live-fire exercises follow tit-for-tat consulate closures

27 July 2020
An electric-vehicle charger: Graphite is used in the batteries that power EVs.
Automobiles

Australia challenges China's graphite crown in EV batteries

Mines use Sino-US brawl to break into vital anode material market

25 July 2020