Cambodian workers feel underpaid in Cambodia and, increasingly, unwanted in Thailand.
Hun Sen's Cambodia

Unstoppable worker outflow dims Cambodia's future prospects

Thailand gets tough on migrants but keeps absorbing labor needed for development

17 July 2018
Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen campaigns in Phnom Penh on July 7. His Cambodian People's Party is all but assured of victory in the July 29 election, after the only credible opposition party was dissolved last year.
Hun Sen's Cambodia

Cambodia election boycott calls are 'treason,' ruling party says

Spokesman vows 'fake news' crackdown as Hun Sen looks to cement grip

13 July 2018
Myanmar's de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi, left, with Chinese President Xi Jinping last year. Suu Kyi has visited China three times since assuming leadership.
International relations

China plays peace broker for Myanmar talks with ethnic groups

Beijing hopes to calm strife on border to clear path for Belt and Road

12 July 2018
More and more Cambodians are shunning pro-government TV channels in favor of social networks as a source of news.
Hun Sen's Cambodia

Facebook now 'crucial' news source in run-up to Cambodia election

Hun Sen government extends media crackdown to social networks

12 July 2018
Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen greets garment workers during a rally May 30.
Hun Sen's Cambodia

Cambodia's Hun Sen steamrolls his way to this month's elections

China's backing shields authoritarian regime from pain of international sanctions

6 July 2018
Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen greets garment workers during a visit to the Phnom Penh Special Economic Zone.
Hun Sen's Cambodia

Garment workers pressured to vote in looming Cambodia elections

Voters apathetic after opposition party outlawed; turnout will hint at legitimacy

5 July 2018
An oil transfer facility in Kyaukpyu. The port city facing the Indian Ocean is a pivotal point on China's Belt and Road initiative.
Politics

Myanmar will ask China to downsize project, minister says

$10bn port investment should be 'as lean as possible' to avoid debt trap

4 July 2018
Japan's Ground Self-Defense Force provided training to local troops in Cambodia as "capacity-building support."
Politics

Japan expands peacekeeping support in Africa and ASEAN

Medical and construction training aims to counter rising Chinese influence

2 July 2018
Bags of rice are unloaded at a port in Jakarta. Though a consensus has been reached on just two of the RCEP's 18 sections, many ASEAN members prioritize reaching any deal for the trade pact.
International relations

RCEP trade pact members seek year-end deal despite differences

16 Asia-Pacific countries hope for agreement to combat US protectionism

2 July 2018
The makeshift shelters of Rohingya refugees in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh, become more vulnerable with the onset of storms and heavy rain. (Getty Images)
Politics

US ranks Myanmar among worst for human trafficking

Laos also downgraded for failure to tackle traffickers and complicit officials

29 June 2018
Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen attends a rally with garment workers in Kandal province, Cambodia, on May 30.
Hun Sen's Cambodia

12 officers close to Cambodia's Hun Sen accused of rights abuses

Human Rights Watch seeks international action as election nears

28 June 2018
The Myanmar military's commander in chief, Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing.
International relations

Myanmar sanctions should target top military brass, report says

Amnesty International accuses 13 officials of crimes against humanity in Rakhine

27 June 2018
Soybeans being loaded at a port in China's Jiangsu Province. China, the world's largest consumer of soybeans, relies on U.S. imports for up to 30% of its needs.
Trade war

Soybean showdown: China removes tariffs in Asia

Beijing touts alternatives to US, but effect may be limited

27 June 2018
Prime Minister Hun Sen, who has Chinese cash and no major political opposition at home, is alienating Cambodia's biggest trade partners.
Hun Sen's Cambodia

US and EU bolster threat of sanctions before Cambodian elections

As China makes Hun Sen rich, the West reminds him who buys his country's exports

25 June 2018
The leaders of Myanmar, Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia and Laos as well as an ASEAN official show they are united in their desire cut some of the strings that are often attached to foreign infrastructure loans.
Politics

Mekong nations get started on their own infrastructure fund

China intimates that it must be involved in the five countries' efforts

16 June 2018
Financing is crucial for Laos' development, even if it means borrowing more, Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith told the Nikkei Asian Review. (Photo by Yoichi Iwata)
The Future of Asia 2018

Laos stresses the need to borrow as West raises debt alarm

Prime minister admits missing target for graduating world's poorest countries

13 June 2018
A soldier at a Rohingya refugee camp. Myanmar's military has kept the U.N. out of the border area used by the ethnic minority to flee the country.
International relations

Myanmar accepts UN's help for Rohingya repatriation

Suu Kyi's decision tests shaky relations with military

7 June 2018
(© Nikkei montage/Source photos by Getty Images)
Asia Insight

China emerges as wild card in elections across Asia

Incumbents draw on Beijing's support as opponents tap resentment of its influence

5 June 2018
A worker uses a blowtorch at the Nam Tha 1 hydroelectric dam construction site that is being built by a Chinese company in Laos.
International relations

Thailand plans regional infrastructure fund to reduce China dependence

The venture with Vietnam, Cambodia, Myanmar and Laos will start operation in 2019

4 June 2018
After a number of delays, Royal Railway has announced that work on Cambodia's northern line would be finished by July. (Photo by Masayori Ishikawa)
Economy

Cambodia's rail back on track after four decades of woe

Interest from Chinese companies in expansion plans fuels debt concerns

4 June 2018
A Chinese lead port project in Kyaukpyu, Myanmar (Photo by Yuichi Nitta)
International relations

Myanmar reviews $9bn China-backed port project on cost concerns

Officials in the country fear a default could force the venture into Chinese hands

4 June 2018
The managing partner at Deloitte Touche Myanmar Vigour Advisory will replace the former finance minister who is under investigation for corruption.
Politics

Deloitte Myanmar chief tapped as new finance minister

Finance expert Soe Win charged with economic reform

29 May 2018
Stream article image
International relations

Protectionism left out of APEC trade ministers' statement

Members call for 'removal of market-distorting subsidies'

26 May 2018
A burned out Rohingya district in the village of Inn Din, in Rakhine State (Photo by Yuichi Nitta)
Economy

Rohingya crisis starves Myanmar's farms of workers

Fields sit idle in areas where the ethnic minority once lived

26 May 2018