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Politics

UN chief calls North Korea 'most dangerous crisis we face'

Guterres urges international action on nuclear threat, Rohingya issue and climate change

6 September 2017
Officials from RCEP members meet in the Japanese city of Kobe on Feb. 27. Negotiations, while ongoing, remain fraught.
Economy

RCEP hits snags on continued discord over tariffs

Members to abandon goal of having rival to TPP this year

6 September 2017
Indonesians protest against the violence inflicted on Rohingya at the Myanmar embassy in Jakarta on Sept. 4. (Photo by Bobby Nugroho)
Politics

Asian neighbors add pressure on Suu Kyi to act on Rohingya crisis

Indian prime minister to add to Indonesia's call for violence to stop

5 September 2017
Members of the media visit a village in northern Rakhine State on a government-organized visit on Aug. 30. (Photo by Thurein Hla Htway)
Politics

Rakhine crisis blights Myanmar economic outlook

Looming 'humanitarian catastrophe' dampens international relations, business sentiment

5 September 2017
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, right, received President Htin Kyaw of Myanmar in August 2016.
Politics

Eyeing stronger ties, Modi embarks on 3-day trip to Myanmar

Indian leader voices confidence that visit will open 'a bright new chapter' in bilateral relations

5 September 2017
Members of a Muslim group stage a rally outside the Burmese embassy in Jakarta on Sept. 4 (Photo by Wataru Suzuki)
Politics

Indonesian minister meets Suu Kyi as Rohingya crisis deepens

President Joko Widodo pressured to act by local Muslim groups

4 September 2017
A Rohingya refugee from Myanmar carries a child in a sack and walks through rice fields after crossing over to the Bangladesh side of the border near Cox's Bazar on Sept. 1.
Politics

Rakhine conflict could ignite regional religious tensions

Myanmar's harsh crackdown on Rohingya population draws extreme international responses

4 September 2017
Cambodia's Prime Minister and president of Cambodian People's Party (CPP) Hun Sen speaks during a campaign rally in Phnom Penh, Cambodia on June 2.
Politics

Hun Sen's government resorts to strongarm tactics against media, critics

Cambodia Daily forced out of business, opposition leader arrested for treason

3 September 2017
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Politics

Security Council urges Myanmar sides to 'de-escalate,' UK diplomat says

But members adopt no statement despite concerns at recent violence

31 August 2017
Buddhist nuns visit the famed Shwedagon Pagoda during the Full Moon of Waso on July 8 in Yangon.
Politics

Buddhist nationalism challenges Myanmar's government

Monastic leaders signal fear of sudden social change as public protests resume

30 August 2017
A Bangladesh border security guard instructs Rohingya refugees to go back to Myanmar.
Politics

Myanmar steps up crackdown against Rohingya insurgents

World warns against persecuting Muslim minority

30 August 2017
Security is deteriorating in Myanmar's Rakhine state, where Rohingya live.
Politics

At least 70 dead in Myanmar after attacks on security forces

Death toll among Rohingya, military climbs as ethnic strife in Rakhine deepens

26 August 2017
Former U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan, center, presents the final report of Myanmar's Advisory Commission on Rakhine State on Aug. 24 in Yangon.
Politics

Myanmar urged to grant Rohingya citizenship

Panel led by ex-UN chief calls for repealing law that disenfranchises Muslim minority

25 August 2017
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi answers questions from reporters after attending the 24th ASEAN Regional Forum in Manila on Aug. 7.
Politics

Editorial: ASEAN's biggest challenge is confronting China

At 50, the bloc must find unity to stand up to Beijing's power plays

24 August 2017
Myanmar military parade at Armed Force's Day in Naypyitaw on March 27 (Photo by Thurein Hla Htway)
Politics

Myanmar's military holds key to further reform

US engagement and training would assist troubled democratic transition

18 August 2017
A worker in Kuala Lumpur prepares a car for transport. Minimum wage hikes benefit labor and drive consumption but can scare off foreign employers.
Economy

Southeast Asian workers press for big minimum wage hikes

Malaysia, Myanmar unions seek raises of 50% or more as economies heat up

18 August 2017
DRB-Hicom Group Managing Director Syed Faisal Albar, left, shakes hands with Li Donghui of Zhejiang Geely Holding Group at a signing ceremony on May 24. DRB-Hicom is selling 49.9% of Malaysian automaker Proton to the Chinese company.
Politics

For ASEAN, Japan is a key counterbalance to China

China's growing economic influence also poses risks to the 10-nation bloc

14 August 2017
Set Aung, deputy minister for national planning and finance, speaks at the Myanmar Democratic Transition Forum on Aug 12 in Naypyitaw. (Photo by Yuichi Nitta)
Economy

Myanmar economy needs 'predictable policy,' new reform leader urges

In first public speech after taking new role, Set Aung offers to-do list to government leaders

13 August 2017
Electricity demand in Myanmar is soaring, especially in urban areas.
Economy

Suu Kyi's dilemma over Myanmar energy mix

Push for coal sparks environmentalist backlash, shortages curb development

12 August 2017
State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi, center, arrives at the Myanmar Democratic Transition Forum in Naypyitaw on Aug. 11.
Politics

Myanmar must balance peace with development, says Suu Kyi

Government bolstering economic policies amid pressure from business

12 August 2017
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, sixth from right, poses with the ASEAN Foreign Ministers during the closing ceremony of the 50th ASEAN Regional Forum summit in Manila on August 8.
Politics

Divided ASEAN hands China diplomatic coup

Regional group is fading into irrelevance as the supposed engine of integration

12 August 2017
Massive traffic jams like this are a daily occurrence in Jakarta. (Photo by Ken Kobayashi)
Economy

ASEAN is looking good, but now looking up to China and India

Even with solid growth through 2050, region will still be dwarfed by two giants

11 August 2017
Myanmar State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi speaks with a resident of the Mandalay District village of Myaytaingkan on Aug. 7. (Photo by Yuichi Nitta)
Politics

Suu Kyi trains policy spotlight on electricity

On village visit, Myanmar leader links wider grid access to prosperity

10 August 2017
Students wave Vietnamese national flags during a military parade in Ho Chi Minh City in April 2015 as part of the 40th anniversary of the fall of Saigon.
Politics

Time for idealism is over in ASEAN

Contradiction is the shared ideal beneath the grouping's multiple systems

10 August 2017
An a erial view of ​Jakarta's ​Sudirman business district ​at sunset​. For half a century, peace has broadly prevailed and prosperity taken hold in many Southeast Asian countries.
Economy

At 50, ASEAN is still punching below its weight

A stronger secretariat would help group build on its stability achievements

9 August 2017