By Zachary Abuza On January 25, a detachment of elite Philippine National Police forces tried to capture a known member of the terrorist group Jemaah Islamiyah — Malaysian national Zulkifli bin Hir, aka Marwan. The police clashed with forces from…
By Michael Sheldrick Prime Minister Tony Abbott’s recent cuts to Australia’s foreign aid budget have left it at the lowest level it has ever been since its origination over 40 years ago. In fact, once these cuts are fully implemented,…
What should we expect from the U.S. strategic rebalance to Asia in 2015? What are the prospects for economic reform in China and Japan? How should we interpret leadership changes in India and Indonesia? Are new strategic alignments emerging in…
By Renato Cruz de Castro The 2012 Scarborough Shoal stand-off between the Philippines and China was the proverbial tipping point caused by China’s pattern of protracted, aggressive actions against the Philippines that began two years earlier. In mid-2010, the Philippine…
The CSIS Asia Program is launching a new weekly CogitAsia podcast that will review and analyze developments and trends in the Indo Pacific. On the podcast this week we are joined by Dr. Jonathan London, professor at the City University…
By Bai Jie On January 19, DPRK’s Vice Foreign Minister and Representative to the Six-Party Talks Ri Yong Ho had an unofficial meeting with former U.S. special representative for North Korea policy Stephen Bosworth in Singapore. Is it another…
Who is he? Charles Maung Bo has been the Catholic archbishop of Yangon since 2003. He began his ecclesiastic career in 1976, serving as a priest and then prefect in Lashio in northern Shan State. He was elevated bishop of…
By Gregory Poling The next stage in the Philippines’ closely-watched arbitration case against China’s maritime claims will come in March when Manila’s lawyers submit their answers to questions posed last month by the five judge panel overseeing the case. The…
By Rick Rossow This month, President Barack Obama will return to India. There are fairly high expectations for the visit, and it is important to understand what could realistically transpire. Echoes of the July 2005 nuclear deal announcement continue to…
By Nathan Patrash For years observers have decried that Indonesia possesses 40 percent of the world’s potential geothermal reserves but utilizes only 5 percent of that renewable energy potential. With domestic energy demand increasing rapidly and a new reform-oriented administration…
By Victor Cha What must the administration contend with in its remaining two years in office on the Korean Peninsula? First, the United States is likely to see the next series of North Korean nuclear and ballistic missile tests. These…
By Jonathan London The normally opaque Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam has made a public splash with its recently concluded 10th Central Committee plenum. The stakes are high and carry implications not only for Vietnam’s development but…
