Politics

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will head to Asia after visiting Tel Aviv and Amman.
International relations

Blinken to visit Japan, South Korea and India next week

China and North Korea on agenda for U.S. secretary of state and Asian leaders

3 November 2023
Afghan citizens gather to cross into Afghanistan on Nov. 1, after Pakistan gave a last warning to undocumented immigrants to leave.
Afghanistan turmoil

Pakistan-Afghanistan border overwhelmed as Afghans face expulsion

Islamabad seeks to enforce vow to deport undocumented migrants

2 November 2023
A Qatari court recently sentenced eight former Indian Navy personnel to death on uncertain grounds, prompting a diplomatic scramble in New Delhi.
International relations

India lobbies for 8 nationals facing death penalty in Qatar

Murky case of ex-navy officers will test New Delhi's prowess and leverage

2 November 2023
Saima Wazed, left, with her mother, Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, right, in 2014. Wazed has been chosen to lead the WHO's regional office for Southeast Asia.
International relations

Bangladesh PM's daughter nominated for key WHO regional post

Saima Wazed chosen over Nepali rival despite criticism of 'apparent nepotism'

1 November 2023
India's new import monitoring system for computers and other selected IT hardware takes effect Nov. 1. (Source photos by Kosaku Mimura and Ken Kobayashi)
Trade

India launches IT hardware import management system: 5 things to know

Monitoring of PCs and tablets follows uproar over plan to impose restrictive licensing

1 November 2023
A public bus burns in Dhaka during a countrywide strike on Oct. 29. The Bangladesh Nationalist Party is protesting police action against its weekend rally and now aims to obstruct transportation for three days this week.
Politics

Bangladesh opposition attempts transport blockade in bid to oust Hasina

Experts say time running out to ease election tensions

31 October 2023
Mohamed Muizzu, the Maldives' president-elect, will inherit a heavy sovereign debt burden when he takes office on Nov. 17.
Economy

Maldives' new president set to take office as debt alarms intensify

World Bank, Fitch greet Muizzu with grim warnings on bills due in next few years

30 October 2023
Shambhu Acharya is Nepal's candidate for the post of WHO regional director for 11 countries across South and Southeast Asia. (Courtesy of Shambhu Acharya)
International relations

Nepal candidate for WHO post says neutrality on line in bitter contest

Shambhu Acharya takes on Bangladesh PM daughter in imminent regional chief vote

29 October 2023
"No other part of the world will see such a big growth opportunity" as India, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal told Nikkei on Oct. 27. (Photo by Shigeru Seno)
Interview

Japan firms should not 'miss bus' on India, commerce chief says

New Delhi ready to roll out 'red-carpet treatment' for companies that invest

28 October 2023
Supporters of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) throw objects at police during a clash in Dhaka on Oct. 28.
Politics

Bangladesh political rallies spark clashes as election tensions rise

Police disperse opposition event held on anniversary of pivotal 2006 violence

28 October 2023
Afghan women living in Pakistan wait to get registered at the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) office in Peshawar in September 2021.
International relations

Pakistan gives last warning to undocumented Afghans and others to leave

State has 'complete data' to begin deportations after Nov. 1 deadline

26 October 2023
A market in Colombo on Oct. 20. Sri Lanka's government is due to present next year's budget in mid-November.
Sri Lanka crisis

Sri Lanka leans on IMF and China as crucial budget test looms

President Wickremesinghe faces growing public frustration ahead of elections

26 October 2023
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi welcomes Canadian counterpart Justin Trudeau to the Group of 20 summit in New Delhi on Sept. 9, shortly before their diplomatic spat went public.
International relations

India to partially resume visas for Canadians amid diplomatic spat

Services had been suspended as countries sparred over Sikh separatist's killing

26 October 2023
U.S. President Joe Biden, center, with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, left, and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, at the G7 summit in Germany in 2022.
Opinion

India-Canada spat is no-win situation for the U.S.

Biden administration keen to avoid taking sides in row over dissident's killing

25 October 2023
A woman uses her smartphone in Gaza in 2022: The ongoing Israel-Hamas war is fast-moving and the many gaps in information leave room for misinformation to take root.
Opinion

Israel-Hamas war shows the formidable power of narrative

Democratic governments need to build societal resilience to manipulation

24 October 2023
Afghan women walk in the district of Zinda Jan, in Herat province, on Oct. 10. After major earthquakes and aftershocks, some women in the region say they face obstacles to receiving aid.
Afghanistan turmoil

Female Afghan earthquake survivors face higher hurdles to aid

Taliban officials insist help is being distributed fairly; women say otherwise

24 October 2023
Oil tankers pass through the Strait of Hormuz: In 2018, 76% of crude oil traveling through the strait was bound for Asia.
Opinion

India, Japan and South Korea should work together to protect shipping

Renewed Middle East fighting highlights energy security vulnerability

23 October 2023
Chinese President Xi Jinping meets Pakistan's caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-haq Kakar in Beijing on Oct. 19, during the Belt and Road Forum.
Belt and Road

Pakistan puts 'blind trust' in China as Belt and Road enters new phase

Countries agree to start major railway project but obstacles remain

23 October 2023
An "India Out" flag in the Maldives last year. Rather than building goodwill, New Delhi's investments and security support for its South Asian neighbors have largely fueled resentment.
Comment

Maldives exposes India's backfiring China containment strategy

Why New Delhi struggles to win friends and influence neighbors

22 October 2023
Pakistan's former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, center, and his daughter Maryam Nawaz greet supporters in Lahore on Oct. 21, after he returned from four years in self-imposed exile.
Politics

Pakistan's Nawaz Sharif vows relief, not revenge, in return from exile

Army believed to tacitly back ex-PM's homecoming ahead of elections

22 October 2023
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau meets Indian counterpart Narendra Modi in New Delhi in 2018. Trudeau in September announced "credible allegations" that Indian agents were behind the death of a Sikh separatist, which Modi's government called "absurd."
International relations

Canada pulls dozens of diplomats from India as dispute flares

New Delhi had demanded parity after being accused in Sikh separatist's death

20 October 2023
India's Adani Ports and local partner Gadot Group bought Israel's Port of Haifa for $1.2 billion. 
Middle East crisis

Adani Group 'very confident' in Israel port as conflict rages

Indian conglomerate's maritime unit reportedly eyeing Mediterranean investment

19 October 2023
Pakistan's Torkham border crossing with Afghanistan: Islamabad has ordered undocumented migrants in the country to leave or face arrest and deportation. (Photo by Jamaima Afridi)
Afghanistan turmoil

Pakistan's deportation clock ticks on paperless Afghan refugees

Taliban, activists slam order for migrants to leave by November or face arrest

18 October 2023
Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, right, is pictured with her daughter Saima Wazed in 2018. Wazed is running to become the World Health Organization's regional director in South and Southeast Asia.
International relations

Bangladesh PM's daughter denies nepotism driving run for WHO post

Experts urge election transparency as outcome could affect health of billions

17 October 2023
Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, left, with Vietnamese Foreign Minister Bui Thanh Son in Hanoi.(Photo by Yuji Nitta)
International relations

India, Vietnam foreign ministers confirm aligned national interests

Jaishankar discusses economic and security issues during Hanoi visit

17 October 2023