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As Taiwan’s Drone Budget Debate Drags on, Time Is Running out

Taiwan could end 2026 without awarding a single new large-scale contract for domestically produced combat drones.

yesterday 0

The Diplomat

Cathy Fang

US Pacific Command Considers Moving Billions in Planned Infrastructure Out of Micronesia

The U.S. is threatening to pull a $2 billion infrastructure project in Yap. It's second time recently there have been major problems in U.S. defense...

yesterday 0

The Diplomat

Cleo Paskal

Sheikh Hasina’s Remarks Spark Bangladesh’s Boldest Message to India Yet

Dhaka wants the post-2024 political order to be viewed not only as a domestic transition but also as the basis of a more assertive foreign policy...

yesterday 0

The Diplomat

Jannatul Naym Pieal

How Kazakhstan Wrote Its Security Service Into the AI Business

Largely construed as routine modernization efforts, the KNB’s new responsibilities may not have not attracted much scrutiny but they could have...

yesterday 0

The Diplomat

Danil Markus

Mongolia’s Fuel Crisis Is a Demand Problem, Not Just a Supply One

The cause of the crisis can be attributed to both external and internal factors, highlighting Mongolia's energy insecurity. The cure might be a path...

yesterday 0

The Diplomat

Telmen Altanshagai

Delhi’s EV Policy Changes the Engine, Not the System

Electric vehicles can reduce pollution and emissions. But underlying issues of preserving car dependence, displacing environmental harm, and workers...

yesterday 0

The Diplomat

Soumyajit Bhar

Balochistan Is Now Pakistan’s Most Dangerous Province

July was Balochistan’s most violent month this year. It also overtook Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to emerge as Pakistan’s most volatile province.

yesterday 0

The Diplomat

Abdul Basit

China’s ‘Ethnic Unity’ Law is Already Harming Uyghurs

Government actions that could once be described as regional campaigns are now embedded in national legislation. Restrictions will become easier to...

yesterday 0

The Diplomat

Omer Kanat

Vietnam to Build Memorial to North Korean War Dead Outside Hanoi

The memorial will be built at an existing ⁠cemetery that commemorates 14 North Korean fighter pilots shot down while battling the U.S. Air Force in...

yesterday 9

The Diplomat

Sebastian Strangio

Artillery-Missile Command: Vietnam’s Answer to the Maritime-Continental Dilemma

Long-range surface-to-surface and ground-based anti-ship missiles will help defend the country on both land and sea.

yesterday 1

The Diplomat

Khang Vu

Malaysia Says It Will Not Deport Rohingya if There Are Risks to Their Safety

Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim's government has announced plans to repatriate around 5,000 Rohingya with Myanmar's assent.

yesterday 8

The Diplomat

Sebastian Strangio

India at a Crossroads: Examining Comprehensive National Power and the Road to 2047

Just how powerful is India? CNP may present a better picture than GDP.

yesterday 1

The Diplomat

Rajeev Agarwal

When the World Stops Fearing the Bomb

On the 81st anniversary of the bombing of Japan, the hibakusha are disappearing just as fast as the world is becoming numb to their cause

previous day 0

The Diplomat

Swaran Singh

Has Life in North Korea Changed Since 2013?

The author of “Witness to North Korea” reflects on which lessons from his time in the country are still relevant today.

previous day 0

The Diplomat

Jerome Sauvage

Are India and Indonesia Leaving the Non-Aligned Movement Behind?

Rather than signaling the abandonment of non-alignment, the same principles are increasingly pursued through a different set of institutions.

previous day 0

The Diplomat

Allan D. Saputra

15 Months After Massacre at Pahalgam, Terrorists Target Non-local Civilians Again in Kashmir

Two laborers from central India were shot dead at a brick kiln in Kulgam in the Kashmir valley on July 31.

previous day 1

The Diplomat

Sudha Ramachandran

Kim Yo Jong Warns Japan Over First Tomahawk Missile Test

The powerful sister of North Korea’s leader said Japan’s preemptive attack capability is entering the “stage of the actual act.”

previous day 1

The Diplomat

Mitch Shin

China’s World AI Cooperation Organization Agenda

Insights from Gloria Chen.

previous day 2

The Diplomat

Mercy A. Kuo

Why Asia Is More Enthusiastic About AI Than the West

In China, India, much of Southeast Asia, and elsewhere in Asia, the net benefits of AI are perceived by populations to be greater than their...

previous day 1

The Diplomat

Akhilesh Pillalamarri

China’s ‘Internet Addiction’ Schools Are Now Locking Up Adults

Parents are paying institutions to coerce adults whose life choices conflict with family expectations.

previous day 1

The Diplomat

Lina Ma

When Small States Practice Buddhist Diplomacy

While China and India compete for influence through Buddhism, smaller states such as Bhutan and Singapore are showing how Buddhist values, networks,...

previous day 2

The Diplomat

Jack Meng-Tat Chia

What a Near-Miss Drone Incident Reveals About South Korea-US Operational Coordination

South Korea's army thought they were locked on to a North Korean UAV. It actually belonged to the U.S. Marine Corps.

previous day 2

The Diplomat

Park Ki-Chul

How Aging Populations Are Transforming Police Work Across Asia

In East Asia’s graying societies, police are becoming the “catch-all” agency for managing aging, like dementia-related wandering.

tuesday 2

The Diplomat

Tao Chen

Germany’s Deportation of an Afghan Without Criminal Record Sets a New Precedent

Germany stepped up its deportations of Afghan nationals even as critics take aim at its interactions with the Taliban regime.

tuesday 3

The Diplomat

Muhammad Murad

Russia’s New Move in the Kuril Dispute

Moscow is naming one of the disputed islands after a Soviet spy who operated in Imperial Japan.

tuesday 2

The Diplomat

Andrew Orchard

It’s Time for the East Asia Summit to Tackle Nuclear Proliferation

As more countries consider acquiring nuclear weapons, the EAS should take the lead in addressing the growing challenges of proliferation.

tuesday 2

The Diplomat

Peter Varghese

Japan’s 2026 Defense White Paper Warns of China’s Expanding Military Reach in the Pacific

This year’s white paper places particular emphasis on Beijing’s growing ability to project military power beyond the First Island Chain.

tuesday 9

The Diplomat

Takahashi Kosuke

KMT, TPP Mull Referendums to Go With Taiwan’s Local Elections

Up to six proposals – ranging from nuclear power to absentee voting – will be put to voters in the November polls, but without the usual round of...

tuesday 3

The Diplomat

Brian Hioe

As World Bank Retreats From Climate Targets, India’s Most Vulnerable Could Pay the Price

Most climate finance goes where it is easiest to lend. Embankments, water systems, shade, and shelters that save lives and livelihoods in villages...

tuesday 2

The Diplomat

Pratyancha Khandare And David Sathuluri

Xi’s Shanghai Tour Offers No Relief for the Housing Crisis

Aside from making sympathetic noises about living standards, Xi offered no new wisdom or solutions.

tuesday 9

The Diplomat

Bonnie Girard

Why India’s Cockroach Movement Might Not Collapse Like the Others

The Cockroach Janta Party reflects every hallmark of modern decentralized leadership theories, but is set to leave a lasting imprint on Indian...

tuesday 4

The Diplomat

Marvin Starominski-Uehara

Myanmar’s Detained Leader Aung San Suu Kyi Meets Red Cross Official

The move is intended to weaken ASEAN's determination to hold Myanmar to the Five-Point Consensus and widen the divisions between the bloc's member...

tuesday 10

The Diplomat

Sebastian Strangio

Donald Trump’s Tariff Re-Do in Southeast Asia

The capricious treatment of partners and allies threatens to do long-term damage to Washington's standing in the region.

tuesday 10

The Diplomat

James Guild

What Philippine President Marcos Said About China in His State of the Nation Address

His rhetoric was familiar, but carried additional weight in light of recent clashes between Chinese and Philippine vessels in the South China Sea.

tuesday 10

The Diplomat

Mong Palatino

Iran in Port Sudan? The Next Threat to Asian Markets

The Red Sea corridor Asian trade depends on has another volatile shore, and almost nobody is watching it.

tuesday 6

The Diplomat

Rohan Gunaratna

Malaysia’s DAP to Hold Vote on Whether to Remain in Anwar’s ‘Unity’ Government

The announcement follows the Pakatan Harapan coalition's bruising defeat in the Negeri Sembilan state election on Saturday.

tuesday 10

The Diplomat

Sebastian Strangio

Myanmar’s Depleted Oil Pipeline

A cross-border energy project deals with the impact of two conflicts.

03.08.2026 6

The Diplomat

Sribala Subramanian

12 Asian Countries Subject to Finalized US Visa Bond Program

The program, which launched as a pilot in August 2025, is now permanent and at present affects the citizens of 50 countries.

03.08.2026 6

The Diplomat

Catherine Putz

Pakistan Wields Iron Fist Against Protesters in Pakistan-administered Jammu and Kashmir

Last week, Pakistani Defense Minister Khwaja Asif described protesters “as enemies like India."

03.08.2026 4

The Diplomat

Sudha Ramachandran

Uzbekistan’s Nuclear Power Plant Project Advances

Officials say that the first small modular reactor of Uzbekistan’s nuclear power plant project is to be commissioned in 2029.

03.08.2026 5

The Diplomat

Niginakhon Saida

Is Japan Decoupling From China?

The new generation of Japanese policymakers is far less willing to accommodate China than its predecessors.

03.08.2026 5

The Diplomat

Jio Kamata

Xi Jinping’s AI Vision

Xi’s speech addressed the attendees at the World Artificial Intelligence Conference, but his real audience was the international community, and of...

03.08.2026 3

The Diplomat

Bonnie Girard

Anwar Ibrahim’s Coalition Suffers Another State-level Electoral Defeat

In Negeri Sembilan, the Pakatan Harapan coalition was washed away by a wave of Malay unity that could determine the outcome of the next general...

03.08.2026 10

The Diplomat

Sebastian Strangio

Myanmar Leader Criticizes Five-Point Consensus, Accuses ASEAN of ‘Discrimination’

Marking his 100th day as president, Min Aung Hlaing told parliament that his administration would pursue its own “solution” to the country’s conflict.

03.08.2026 10

The Diplomat

Sebastian Strangio

For a Gen Z Revolt, Pakistan Needs a Cause, Not a Captain

Imran Khan is undoubtedly popular. But building a protest movement that revolves around Khan and his freedom immediately excludes half the population.

03.08.2026 10

The Diplomat

Imran Khalid

Japan’s Intelligence Reform Has a Counterintelligence Problem

As the Takaichi administration strives to strengthen Japan’s intelligence capabilities, it’s important to build up counterintelligence...

31.07.2026 5

The Diplomat

Terrence Matsuo

Transaction or Transformation? Inside the Russia-North Korea Relationship

How transactional is the massive shift in their relations and how sensitive is it to the Ukraine war?

31.07.2026 5

The Diplomat

Ankit Panda

Tajikistan Denies a Clothing Ban Its Police Keep Enforcing

A rumor with one traceable source drew an official rebuttal in Dushanbe that buried its documented enforcement.

31.07.2026 3

The Diplomat

Kulobiddin Norov

For the Arakan Army, Recognition Must Be Earned

The Arakan Army’s quest for international recognition should be tied to Rohingya rights and accountability.

31.07.2026 4

The Diplomat

Md. Himel Rahman