4 h. ago Why China may be better placed than US in tussle for rare earths

During his Southeast Asia trip in October, US President Donald Trump sealed deals with Malaysia and Thailand on the same day – both aimed at securing and diversifying America’s supply chains for critical minerals and rare earths. Trump and Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim agreed to step up cooperation on building and expanding critical minerals supply chains, according to a White House statement. They also agreed to strengthen the security of critical minerals and rare earths supplies in...

Politics

18 h. ago Bali mulls Airbnb ban to put a lid on revenue leak, overtourism

Bali is considering a ban on Airbnb’s accommodation, its latest attempt to impose order on a resort island struggling to cope with a record surge in tourism. Use of Airbnb-style rentals has exploded in recent years, eroding tax revenue from hotels even as foreign arrivals boom, Bali Governor I Wayan Koster told state news agency Antara. The proliferation of unregistered villas and guest houses in turn hampers the government’s ability to raise revenue to fund public services, he was quoted as...

Society

20 h. ago 2025/99 "RedNote’s Success and Beijing’s Soft Power in Southeast Asia" by Wang Zheng

2025/99 "RedNote’s Success and Beijing’s Soft Power in Southeast Asia" by Wang Zheng  ISEAS - Yusof Ishak Institute

Politics

36 h. ago Chinese executive named as suspect in Indonesia radioactive contamination probe

Indonesian authorities on Thursday named a Chinese executive of a metal smelting company as a suspect in a caesium-137 contamination case that resulted in the recall of some exports to the US. Lin Jingzhang, who is a director of PT Peter Metal Technology (PMT), has been designated as a suspect, Bara Hasibuan, a spokesperson for the investigating task force, said. “The Certain Crimes Directorate of the Indonesian National Police’s Criminal Investigation Unit has named Lin Jingzhang, a citizen of...

Politics

41 h. ago In wake of Hong Kong blaze, Southeast Asia’s fire hazards come under scrutiny

Last year, Mutalib Uthman was forced to look on helplessly as his house burned to the ground and all his possessions were incinerated in a wall of flames and thick, black smoke. The book publisher from Selangor said a faulty fuse box on the lower floor sparked the blaze inside his home in Bandar Baru Bangi. His two-storey house in the town near Putrajaya was destroyed quickly despite a neighbour trying to help with a fire extinguisher. “The box was inside the store room, which was full of unused...

Events

65 h. ago Asia’s floods kill over 1,000, lay bare human cost of climate inaction

More than 1,400 people have been killed across South and Southeast Asia in a week of catastrophic floods, exposing how rising global temperatures are amplifying extreme weather, even as international negotiations to phase out fossil fuels stall. Successive storms, cyclones and relentless rains have triggered catastrophic flash floods and landslides in Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Vietnam and Malaysia, overwhelming local authorities already operating at the limits of their capacity. While...

Events

67 h. ago Thais in good spirits after government lifts ban on afternoon alcohol sales

Thailand on Wednesday relaxed decades-old alcohol sales restrictions, allowing consumers to buy wine, beer and spirits during previously prohibited afternoon hours in a six-month trial. The predominantly Buddhist country still maintains strict alcohol laws, limiting sales to specific hours and banning them on religious holidays. Liquor stores, bars and other purveyors were banned from selling alcohol from 2pm to 5pm, but the eased rules permit sales from 11am to midnight during the trial while a...

Politics

2 d. ago Search for Malaysia’s MH370 resumes in Indian Ocean after over a decade

The search for missing Malaysia Airlines flight 370 will resume on December 30, Malaysia’s transport ministry said on Wednesday, more than a decade after the China-bound flight disappeared in one of the world’s greatest aviation mysteries. Flight MH370, a Boeing 777, was carrying 227 passengers and 12 crew when it vanished en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing in 2014. Multiple search operations for the plane have been conducted since then but all proved fruitless. The most recent search in the...

Politics

2 d. ago Search for Malaysia’s MH370 resumes in Indian Ocean after more than a decade

The search for missing Malaysia Airlines flight 370 will resume on December 30, Malaysia’s transport ministry said on Wednesday, more than a decade after the China-bound flight disappeared in one of the world’s greatest aviation mysteries. Flight MH370, a Boeing 777, was carrying 227 passengers and 12 crew when it vanished en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing in 2014. Multiple search operations for the plane have been conducted since then but all proved fruitless. The most recent search in the...

Politics

3 d. ago Chinese involvement stalls Manila Bay bridge project due to security fears

The Philippines deferred the awarding of a project that is part of a plan to build one of the world’s longest marine bridges after local opposition over the potential involvement of a Chinese company due to national security fears. The proposals were “undergoing thorough review” by the Asian Development Bank (ADB), which acts as a lender and an overseer of the project to ensure it meets international environmental and governance standards, Manila’s public works department said in a statement on...

Events

3 d. ago How a husband’s secret life between Singapore and Malaysia was exposed

A man who had been married for 15 years secretly wed again in Sarawak, Malaysia, and fathered two more children, all the while keeping this second family from his wife and two kids in Singapore. Ng Teong Min’s deception lasted 30 years from 1995 until August this year, when a whistle-blower exposed his double life in an email to the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority. The 67-year-old pleaded guilty to the offence of bigamy and was sentenced to one year and five months’ jail on Tuesday. Ng,...

Politics

3 d. ago ‘Unconstitutional’: Mahathir reports PM Anwar to police over Trump trade deal

Mahathir Mohamad has lodged a police report against Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim regarding the Reciprocal Trade Agreement (ART) between Malaysia and the United States. According to Sinar Harian, the former prime minister claimed that Anwar’s actions were taken without the full mandate of the entities meant to represent the Federation of Malaysia. “The agreement is not valid because he [Anwar] is not the sole representative of the Federation. Such agreements should require the consent of four...

Events

3 d. ago AirAsia boss says ‘bizarre’ Airbus glitch a ‘good warning’ to industry

AirAsia Aviation Group, one of Airbus’ largest customers of single-aisle jets, says testing protocols for aircraft software need to be re-examined in the wake of the weekend glitch that required an urgent update. Tony Fernandes, the founder of the Southeast Asian carrier, said it was likely the software was not thoroughly tested. “It seems a bit bizarre, it is something it has to look at, it’s obvious it wasn’t tested,” Fernandes said in an interview on Tuesday. “I’m not an expert but it failed...

Events

4 d. ago Chinese national jailed in Singapore for attempted rape of ex

A PhD student who attempted to rape his former housemate after his repeated advances were rejected was sentenced to jail and caning in Singapore on Monday. Gao Xiong, a 31-year-old Chinese national, will be imprisoned for six years, six months and six weeks, and receive three strokes of the cane. He pleaded guilty to four charges which include attempted rape and criminal trespass, with another three charges taken into consideration. The court heard that Gao was completing his PhD studies in...

Events

4 d. ago Soldiers deployed in Sri Lanka, Indonesia as Asian flood toll approaches 1,000

Sri Lanka and Indonesia deployed military personnel on Monday to help victims of devastating flooding that has killed nearly 1,000 people across four countries in Asia in recent days. Separate weather systems brought torrential, extended rainfall to the entire island of Sri Lanka and large parts of Indonesia’s Sumatra, southern Thailand and northern Malaysia last week. Arriving in North Sumatra on Monday, Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto said the government’s “priority now is how to...

Events

4 d. ago Soldiers deployed in Sri Lanka, Indonesia as Asian flood toll tops 1,000

The toll in deadly flooding and landslides across parts of Asia climbed past 1,000 on Monday as hardest-hit Sri Lanka and Indonesia deployed military personnel to help survivors. Separate weather systems brought torrential, extended rainfall to the entire island of Sri Lanka and large parts of Indonesia’s Sumatra, southern Thailand and northern Malaysia last week. Much of the region is currently in its monsoon season, but climate change is producing more extreme rain events and turbocharging...

Events

4 d. ago India’s looming BrahMos missile deal with Indonesia challenges US

India and Indonesia are close to finalising a US$450 million sale of BrahMos missiles, in a deal analysts say could give Southeast Asia a long-sought alternative to dependence on the US or China. The deal, discussed last Thursday during the third India–Indonesia Defence Ministers’ Dialogue co-chaired by Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and his Indonesian counterpart Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin, would make Indonesia only the second Southeast Asian country after the Philippines to acquire the missile...

Events

5 d. ago Flood death tolls rise in Indonesia, Sri Lanka as aid trickles in

Some residents of the flood-hit Indonesian island of Sumatra have resorted to stealing food and water to survive, authorities said on Sunday, while Sri Lankan officials said deaths from floods and mudslides in that island nation have risen to 193. The floods, which hit Indonesia nearly a week ago, have killed 303 people and displaced thousands, with the number expected to rise as more bodies are recovered. The deluges triggered landslides, damaged roads, cut off parts of the island and downed...

Events

5 d. ago 17,000 police deployed as protests erupt in Philippines over flood control scam

Thousands massed in the Philippine capital of Manila on Sunday demanding accountability over a multibillion-dollar infrastructure scandal that has seen scores of officials, lawmakers and construction firm owners accused of corruption. Rage over so-called ghost flood control projects has been mounting for months in the archipelago country of 116 million, where entire towns have been buried in floodwaters driven by powerful typhoons in recent months. President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr has seen friend...

Events

6 d. ago Singapore becomes Plan B for Chinese travellers giving Japan a wide berth

Amid the diplomatic fallout between Tokyo and Beijing, Hunanese accountant Echo He feels relieved she has chosen Southeast Asia for her year-end trip with her husband and colleagues, instead of the popular choice, Japan. The latest spat between both nations arose on November 7 when Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi suggested her country could deploy its military forces in the event of a conflict in the Taiwan Strait. This infuriated Beijing, which sees Taiwan as part of China to be reunited...

Politics