A cargo train approaches Kazakhstan's border with China: Over 80% of goods bound for Europe from China and Central Asia pass through Kazakhstan.
Murat Nurtleu

Kazakhstan is building more connections with the world

Economic program will boost Europe-Asia cargo flows, accelerate green transition

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Murat Nurtleu
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Archbishop Charles Bo at an interfaith prayer ceremony in Yangon in 2017: Sometimes his messages are subtle. 

Cardinal Bo is an ally, not foe, of Myanmar's freedom cause

Catholic leader has called out atrocities, not 'cavorted' with junta leaders

Russian President Vladimir Putin shakes hands with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during a meeting at the Vostochny Сosmodrome in Russia's far eastern Amur region on Sept. 13
Nikkei Editorial

Russia-North Korea military ties are cause for concern

Democracies must work together to counter authoritarian coercion

Nikkei Editorial
Farmers with cassava in Oyo, Nigeria: Further incorporation of African perspectives into the G20 will be a major step forward toward boosting sustainability and climate action.
Sujan Chinoy and Tetsushi Sonobe

U.N.'s 2030 Agenda needs a reboot

Success of G20 and G7 summits can provide new momentum toward advancing SDGs

Sujan Chinoy and Tetsushi Sonobe
A technician inspects anti-cancer drugs at a pharmaceutical lab in Jiangsu province, China: BRICS+ members should be able to share technology and human resources.
Natasha Agarwal

BRICS+ will benefit from opening way to free movement of workers

Member states can better absorb technology with infusions of human capital

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Natasha Agarwal
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French President Emmanuel Macron, left, looks on as U.S. President Joe Biden speaks with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida at the NATO summit in Vilnius, Lithuania on July 12.
Masahiro Matsumura

Japan misread the signs in pushing plan for a NATO office

Tokyo needs to find ways to work around the concerns of Europe, Southeast Asia

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Masahiro Matsumura
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U.S. President Joe Biden, left, with Vietnamese Communist Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, at a military welcome ceremony at the Presidential Palace in Hanoi on Sept.10. (Pool via AP)
Jonathan Stromseth

U.S., Vietnam have work to do to build out new partnership

Remarkable upgrade in ties underscores shared economic, strategic interests

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Jonathan Stromseth
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Commuters in Shinjuku, Tokyo: The real lesson of Japanification is that government intervention purchases time for deleveraging and economic reforms.
Satyajit Das

The real lessons of Japanification are getting lost

Need for structural reform simply cannot be avoided

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Satyajit Das
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Doctors outside a government hospital in Jammu: As the Indian health sector develops, fostering a better gender balance at all levels is crucial.
Julie Davies and Kamal Gulati

Women in India have a key role to play in health care leadership

Management development programs can reduce competency gaps

Julie Davies and Kamal Gulati
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, right, hugs Azali Assoumani, African Union chairman and the Comoros' president, in New Delhi on Sep. 9. (Pool via Reuters)
Prerna Gandhi

India deserves credit for holding the G20 together

Refuting skeptics, New Delhi's diplomats secured compromise to preserve consensus

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Prerna Gandhi
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U.S. President Joe Biden raises a toast with his Vietnamese counterpart, Vo Van Thuong, right, on Sept. 11 in Hanoi.

If Biden can befriend Vietnam, he can work with Myanmar

Pragmatic approach will better serve U.S. strategic interests than sanctions

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Zhao Sheng, China's new ambassador to Afghanistan, shakes hands with Taliban Prime Minister Mohammad Hasan Akhund, left, at the Presidential Palace in Kabul on Sep. 13. (Handout via AP)
Raffaello Pantucci

China and the Taliban are friends in need of each other

Investment creeps forward amid continued security worries

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Raffaello Pantucci
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Smartphone users in Phnom Penh: Penetration of smartphones has resulted in a huge rise in semiconductor manufacturing's call on physical resources. 
Richard Yetsenga

Semiconductors won't help hold down prices anymore

Technology's demand on physical and labor resources is becoming inflationary

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Richard Yetsenga
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Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida with his new cabinet in Tokyo on Sep. 13: Naming 5 female ministers merely matches a milestone achieved by his predecessors. (Photo by Mayumi Tsumita) 

Continuity is wrong signal for Kishida to send

Problem with Japan's cabinet is dearth of ideas, not personnel

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Indigenous children near the site of Indonesia's future capital Nusantara in East Kalimantan province: Kalimantan is generally short of power and lacking in adequate infrastructure.
Ahmad Munawir Siregar and Michael Suryaprawira

Indonesia needs a better power network for itself and ASEAN

Nation's far-flung renewable energy resources would be asset for bloc's grid

Ahmad Munawir Siregar and Michael Suryaprawira
Chinese Premier Li Qiang speaks during the ASEAN-China Summit in Jakarta on Sept. 6. It was his first appearance at an international conference since assuming office in March. (Pool photo/Reuters)
Nikkei Editorial

China must end its diplomacy of coercion

Neighboring governments should strengthen cooperation to counter threats

Nikkei Editorial
BRICS leaders on Aug. 24: The bloc's new members will give it a meaningfully larger share of global GDP than the G7.

BRICS+ is set to drive the Global South's agenda

Lack of shared political, economic vision will restrict areas of influence

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The Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant, now India's largest, began commercial operation in the state of Tamil Nadu in 2013: Nuclear power represents just 1.6% of India's energy mix.
Saurabh Todi

India can get more out of nuclear power with private sector help

Corporate involvement would bring competition, lower costs and speed development

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Saurabh Todi
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A QR code for Thai e-payment system PromptPay in Bangkok: Cross-border e-payments are a potential area of digital cooperation for Japan and ASEAN.
Maria Monica Wihardja

ASEAN and Japan have lessons for each other in digital change

By working together, the two can help mitigate technological fragmentation

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Maria Monica Wihardja
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A Pertamina production rig off the coast of West Java: Indonesia aims to double gas output to around 12.4 billion cubic feet per day by 2030. (Antara Foto via Reuters)

Southeast Asia needs to put muscle into domestic gas push

Policymakers must quickly overhaul rules for upstream development

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Wind turbines and solar panels in Hebei province, China: Beijing recently aligned its green taxonomy with the EU's. 
Woochong Um

A regional Asian green standard would help unlock trillions

Agreed definitions would speed flow of funds for cutting carbon emissions

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Woochong Um
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A copy of The Kashmir Wala on the floor as staff vacate the magazine's offices in Srinagar on Aug. 21: It was a rare media voice with uncompromised ethics. (Sipa via AP)
Arjumand Shaheen

Kashmir should get its press freedom back

Indian authorities have squeezed out the last independent local outlet

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Arjumand Shaheen
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Russian President Vladimir Putin awaits the head of Myanmar's junta at the 2022 Eastern Economic Forum: The forum now looks like a rogues' gallery of the world's worst regimes. (Pool via Reuters) 
James D.J. Brown

Putin's Pacific party is over if Kim Jong Un is guest of honor

Even China's top leaders now snub Vladivostok's Eastern Economic Forum

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James D.J. Brown
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U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken visits the headquarters of the Vietnamese Communist Party with General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong in April. (Pool via REUTERS)
Alexander L. Vuving

Vietnam needs more than an upgraded U.S. partnership

Hanoi has to remake its 'safety net' for changed geopolitical environment

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Alexander L. Vuving
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Paramilitary soldiers at a bus stop in New Delhi on Sept. 4: Advertisements with images of Prime Minister Narendra Modi are everywhere ahead of the G20 summit.
Swaminathan S. Anklesaria Aiyar

India's Modi is not the world's guru

Publicity campaign ahead of G20 summit strikes the wrong note

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Swaminathan S. Anklesaria Aiyar
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