Politics

Nepal's only railway is a 30-km line that runs from the southeastern city of Janakpur to Jayanagar, across the Indian border. (Photo by Yuji Kuronuma)
Belt and Road

Himalayan railway plan at stake as China's Xi pays rare visit to Nepal

Trip follows lectures to ruling party cadres on Belt and Road champion's 'thought'

9 October 2019
Imran Khan, Prime Minister of Pakistan, is due to speak at China-Pakistan business forum on Tuesday.
Belt and Road

Pakistan's Khan to allay Beijing fears over stalled Belt and Road

Prime minister wants more investment despite mounting CPEC concerns

7 October 2019
Tsai Ing-wen rejuvenated the New Southbound Policy in 2016 while Beijing launched its measures to bring Taipei back into line.
Opinion

Taiwan's New Southbound Policy is decreasing its reliance on China

Looking to regional neighbors for closer trade relationships is bearing fruit

4 October 2019
Onion prices more than doubled in recent weeks after floods damaged crops across the country. (Photo by Yuji Kuronuma)
Economy

India's eye-watering onion prices put extra pressure on Modi

Government bans exports and warns 'unscrupulous' merchants against hoarding

4 October 2019
Grameenphone, the largest mobile phone operator in Bangladesh, was asked earlier this year to pay a total of over $1.5 billion in unpaid taxes and penalties for failing to meet revenue-sharing obligations. (Photo by Yuji Kuronuma)
Economy

Fearing a loss of investment, Bangladesh assuages multinationals

Minister to mediate telcos' tax dispute while secretary to lobby drug giant Sanofi

29 September 2019
Bangladesh plans to create new casino zones to increase foreign tourist arrivals.
Economy

Bangladesh wants in on Asia's crowded casino market

Government weighs tourists-only gambling amid crackdown on illegal dens

27 September 2019
The Sri Lankan cricket board announced that 10 leading players have pulled out of the Pakistan tour, effectively reducing the team to a B-side.
International relations

Safety of Sri Lankan cricket team puts Pakistan security to the test

Terrorist attack on Sri Lankan bus a decade ago still haunts the game

27 September 2019
Efforts by Pakistan's Federal Board of Revenue have increased the tax roll and chipped away at the country's image of being rife with tax cheats.
Economy

Pakistan registers a million new taxpayers ahead of IMF review

Terms of $6bn loan create headwinds for growth and business confidence

26 September 2019
Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan, left, and U.S. President Donald Trump meet on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York on Sept. 23.
International relations

Pakistan's Khan and Trump meet, haunted by different conflicts

Kashmir and possible US exit from Afghanistan dominate talks in New York

25 September 2019
The Nepalese government hopes to export surplus hydroelectricity to India to bring in badly needed foreign exchange, but some projects have been canceled or scaled back.
International relations

Nepal power export plans in doubt as India reviews options

$500m hydropower project cut sharply due to a dimming profit outlook

20 September 2019
A highway leading to Gwadar, Pakistan. Baloch insurgent groups from Balochistan have been the source of most of the attacks on Chinese interests since inception of CPEC.
Belt and Road

China's efforts to speed up Belt and Road in Pakistan falters

Eager to salvage $62bn Economic Corridor, Beijing hosts provincial leaders

16 September 2019
Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan. left, speaks with Chinese Premier Li Keqiang during a signing ceremony in Beijing, in April.
8 September 2019
Workers load garbage into a dump truck at a trash dump teeming with plastic bags in Islamabad. 
Environment

Pakistan moves to ban plastic bags

Urgent tweet prompts government action, but experts warn results may take years

6 September 2019
Kutupalong refugee camp in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh: more than 700,000 members of the ethnic Rohingya live in sordid makeshift refugee camps. 
Opinion

Rohingya refugees should press Myanmar for their own state

Self-government in Rakhine could persuade them back from Bangladesh

4 September 2019
Members of various radical Sikh organisations shout pro-Khalistan slogans and brandish swords in Amritsar, Punjab state on June 6.
Opinion

Pakistan will regret stirring up Sikh nationalism in India

Supporting Khalistan will backfire on Islamabad, also vulnerable to insurgencies

3 September 2019
Some analysts said that U.S. President Donald Trump's intervention has been used by both India and Pakistan to cement their positions. (Source photos by Reuters)
Comment

How Trump triggered the Kashmir turmoil

US president's possible intent to stabilize South Asia had opposite effect

31 August 2019
The Indian-controlled portion of Kashmir has been under a military clampdown since New Delhi scrapped its special constitutional status on Aug. 5.
International relations

India and Pakistan tug-of-war in South Asia grows over Kashmir

As smaller nations try to avoid trouble, experts see New Delhi having the edge

30 August 2019
From left, Naypyidaw, Putrajaya and Astana (source photo from Reuters)
Politics

A short history of relocating capitals in Asia

Indonesia's move has precedents in places such as Myanmar and Malaysia

30 August 2019
Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan speaks at the groundbreaking ceremony of the Kartarpur Corridor project held in November 2018.
Kashmir turmoil

Pakistan backs India's Sikh separatists as Kashmir tensions rise

New Delhi's worried over Islamabad's renewed push for an independent 'Khalistan'

29 August 2019
Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan, left, and his Indian counterpart, Narendra Modi. (Source photo from Reuters and Nikkei)
International relations

India and Pakistan's Kashmir dispute stirs nuclear fears

Rhetoric intensifies as rivals rush toward sea-based launch capability

28 August 2019
Singapore plans to keep water at bay by building giant seawalls.
Opinion

Asia's megacities must learn from Indonesia's capital move

Few others can afford Singapore's pricey climate crisis plan

27 August 2019
Gotabaya Rajapaksa, the younger brother of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa, greets supporters in Colombo on Aug. 11. His promise of "ensuring security" is a message that is resonating with Sri Lanka's majority Sinhalese-Buddhist community.
Politics

Sri Lankan strongman eyes presidency in upcoming elections

Former leader Rajapaksa's brother vows security after Easter bombings

23 August 2019
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi gives his Independence Day speech on Aug. 15, in which he insisted that scrapping the special status of Jammu and Kashmir was necessary for the region's development.
International relations

Kashmir looms over Modi's trip to France and Middle East

Indian PM makes countermove as Pakistan vows to take dispute to Hague

22 August 2019
Stream article image
International relations

Trump steps in to defuse India-Pakistan tensions over Kashmir

President's calls to Modi and Khan set stage for US-led cooling of tensions

20 August 2019
Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan has strongly condemned India's recent downgrading of Kashmir's status from a state with some autonomy to two territories.
Belt and Road

Kashmir issue puts Pakistan's Belt and Road projects on fast track

China will be pleased, but may not offer more than sympathy over disputed land

18 August 2019