Asia Watch Archive

On July 17, U.S. climate envoy John Kerry met his Chinese counterpart, Xie Zhenhua, in Beijing to resume bilateral climate talks. The three-day meeting comes just months before the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change COP28 meeting in Dubai. Kerry called on China to implement tougher climate policies to fast-track its decarbonization. And while the meeting did not result in a bilateral agreement, Kerry remained optimistic, calling the meeting a success.  

On July 11, India’s Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council raised taxes on online gaming, casinos, and horse racing from 18 to 28 per cent. The move has sent shockwaves across an industry that has boomed in recent years and is now valued at C$2 billion annually. The brunt of the tax is expected to be passed on to consumers, but the move could also lead to job losses, hinder innovation, and curtail foreign investment.

  

The world has reached a “watershed moment” on whether parts of the ocean’s seabed should be mined for resources needed for green technologies. For years, the UN’s 169-member International Seabed Authority (ISA), which can grant permits for mining in waters beyond national jurisdiction, has been trying to hammer out an agreement on whether to authorize deep-sea mining, and, if so, what standards mining companies would need to meet.

On Tuesday, India chaired the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation’s (SCO) annual heads of state meeting, with virtual cameos from Chinese President Xi Jinping, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Russian President Vladimir Putin, and more.  

The government of Hong Kong is offering rewards of C$170,000 for information that would aid in the prosecution of eight dissidents living in exile, including leading pro-democracy activist Nathan Law. Governments of the three countries where the exiles reside — Australia, the U.K., and the U.S. — all condemned the arrest warrants and vowed not to comply with any extradition requests. 

On July 13, the Thai parliament will vote on a new prime minister. In the May 14 election, the pro-democracy Move Forward Party, led by Pita Limjaroenrat, secured three times as many votes as the United Thai Nation Party. United Thai Nation is led by incumbent Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-o-cha, who has been in power for nearly a decade. However, because of an electoral system that favours conservative pro-military parties, Move Forward’s landmark win could turn into little more than a symbolic victory.

A new international survey released by Pew Research Center this week shows that overall views of the U.S. (59%) and President Joe Biden (54%) are favourable, including in the five Asia Pacific countries captured in the 23-nation survey. The public opinion poll also revealed that the U.S.’ reputation has rebounded somewhat as the world’s leading economic power, with only six of the 23 putting China in the lead.

Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas concluded a four-day trip to China last Friday, agreeing to expedite negotiations on a free trade agreement and stating his support for Beijing’s repressive policies against Uyghurs.

On June 19, Thailand’s caretaker government convened a high-level meeting with Myanmar’s junta, leading to a backlash from ASEAN member states and the UN, among others. In sanctioning the meeting, Thailand’s outgoing prime minister, Prayut Chan-o-cha, who seized control in a 2014 coup, violated ASEAN’s Five-Point Consensus.

On June 9, Japan made two notable changes to its migration-related policies and laws. First, Japan’s cabinet approved the expansion of the country’s blue-collar visa to allow workers in nine more sectors to renew resident permits indefinitely, a move welcomed by Japan’s business community. Second, the upper house passed a controversial immigration bill permitting authorities to forcibly deport refugee applicants.

NATO is set to strengthen its Asia Pacific engagement through the signing of four Individually Tailored Partnership Programmes (ITPPs) with Australia, Japan, New Zealand, and South Korea, a regional grouping known as the ‘AP4.’ The ITPPs are designed to deepen co-operation on issues like cybersecurity, climate change, disinformation, and space. NATO has proposed establishing a liaison office in Tokyo to facilitate the ITPPs.

The U.S. warned participants at the June 2-4 Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, the region’s premier forum for discussing security issues, about North Korea’s growing reliance on cyberattacks and cryptocurrency theft to fund its missile-development program. Such illicit activities generate roughly half of North Korea’s foreign currency revenue, according to the U.S.

Cybertheft tactics evolving

The climate crisis and the El Niño phenomenon have turned 2023 into a year of record-breaking, sky-high temperatures. And nowhere has the damage been more severe than in Bangladesh, one of the world’s most climate-vulnerable countries.

Over the last two years, Hong Kong authorities have removed nearly 200 works from the shelves of the city’s public libraries, citing possible violations of Hong Kong’s National Security Law (NSL).

Filipino radio journalist Cresenciano Bunduquin was shot and killed by two assailants outside his home on May 31 in the province of Oriental Mindoro. One attacker died after Bunduquin’s son pursued the duo in his car; the other fled the scene and remains at large. The assassination underscores the Philippines’s status as one of the most dangerous countries in the world for members of the press.

A big win for the progressive Move Forward Party in Thailand’s general election on Sunday (May 14) may mark a turning point for the role of the military and monarchy in the country’s politics. Move Forward campaigned on a platform of curbing the power of both institutions, which made it popular with voters but now puts it in the crosshairs of fellow legislators who remain staunch defenders of these institutions.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau concluded an official visit to Seoul today (May 18), the first such visit by a Canadian prime minister in nine years. During the visit, Trudeau and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol witnessed the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) focused on co-operation on critical minerals, clean energy transitions, and energy security.  

High-profile expulsions, allegations of foreign interference, and comments about “slave labour” have cooled Canada-China relations of late and renewed interest in China’s thick playbook of diplomatic 'countermeasures.'

Pakistan has been engulfed in turmoil since the arrest of former prime minister Imran Khan on Tuesday. Supporters of Khan, who faces corruption-related charges, have staged protests across the country, some of which turned violent. On Thursday, the country’s Supreme Court declared the arrest illegaland ordered his immediate release.

The government of Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has come under attack by two former prime ministers, Najib Razak and Mahathir Mohamad, possibly undermining the country’s political stability just five months into Anwar’s tenure. The United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), which wields considerable influence in the government’s 19-party coalition, has called for Najib’s release from prison, where he is serving a 12-year sentence for his role in the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) corruption scandal.