Pitching an agenda of "clean politics,” former Thai leader Abhisit Vejjajiva expects to play a kingmaker’s role in any coalition that seeks to rule the nation after next month’s election. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/20/asia-pacific/politics/thai-anti-scammer-kingmaker/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #asiapacific #politics #thailand #abhisitvejjajiva #southeastasia
The Philippines has discovered a new natural gas source for the first time in over a decade, extending the life of its depleting gas field. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/19/asia-pacific/pps-gas-discovery/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #asiapacific #gas #philippines #southeastasia #energy
An impeachment complaint was filed against Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. at the House of Representatives, which is dominated by his allies. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/19/asia-pacific/politics/philippines-marcos-impeachment-house/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #asiapacific #politics #philippines #ferdinandmarcosjr #southeastasia
A former security enforcer who has turned his axe on red tape, Vietnam's top leader To Lam is a classical music lover with a sometimes controversial taste for fine steak. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/19/asia-pacific/politics/vietnam-to-lam-secret-policeman/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #asiapacific #politics #vietnam #tolam #southeastasia
As ASEAN chair, the Philippines foreign minister is aiming for an ‘effective and substantive’ code of conduct for the disputed South China Sea — a daunting task that has eluded the Southeast Asian bloc for years. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/18/asia-pacific/politics/philippines-foreign-secretary-coc-south-china-sea/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #asiapacific #politics #philippines #theresalazaro #china #southeastasia #asean #southchinasea #disputedislands
Hundreds of people have fled a suspected Cambodian cyberfraud center, after the country's most wanted alleged scam kingpin was arrested and deported to China. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/16/asia-pacific/crime-legal/cambodia-fradsters-scam-center/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #asiapacific #crimelegal #cambodia #southeastasia
His name is not on the ballot, and his photographs don’t appear on campaign posters. But one man looms large over the general election under way in Myanmar: junta chief Min Aung Hlaing. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/13/asia-pacific/politics/myanmar-junta-election-civil-war/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #asiapacific #politics #aungsansuukyi #myanmar #southeastasia #minaunghlaing
Indonesia's Prabowo Subianto reiterated his commitment to building the country's new capital city as he made his first overnight stay there as president, the government said, amid questions about the project's future. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/13/asia-pacific/politics/indonesia-prabowo-capital-city-visit/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #asiapacific #politics #indonesia #prabowosubianto #southeastasia
In a landmark case accusing Myanmar of genocide, Gambia told judges at the United Nations' International Court of Justice that Myanmar targeted minority Muslim Rohingya for destruction and made their lives a nightmare. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/13/asia-pacific/myanmar-rohingya-lives-genocide/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #asiapacific #myanmar #rohingya #refugees #gambia #genocide #icj #southeastasia #un
Yodchanan Wongsawat, the Pheu Thai Party’s top candidate for premier, faces a balancing act — he must leverage his family’s legacy while showing he has fresh ideas to revitalize the economy. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/12/asia-pacific/politics/nephew-thai-thaksin-election/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #asiapacific #politics #thaksinshinawatra #thailand #southeastasia
In rows of bamboo shelters, refugees who escaped Myanmar nearly a decade ago await developments at the International Court of Justice in The Hague, where a genocide case against Myanmar opens Monday. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/12/asia-pacific/politics/rohingya-un-genocide-hearing/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #asiapacific #politics #rohingya #un #genocide #southeastasia #myanmar #bangladesh #refugees
Ousted Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi has been siloed in military detention since a 2021 coup, but her absence looms large over junta-run polls the generals are touting as a return to democracy. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/11/asia-pacific/politics/myanmar-election-suu-kyi/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #asiapacific #politics #myanmar #aungsansuukyi #southeastasia
Thailand’s army said Cambodia claimed that a fresh cross-border fire was an accident, after Bangkok accused Cambodian forces of violating a 10-day truce. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/06/asia-pacific/thailand-cambodia-border-strike-truce/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #asiapacific #thailand #cambodia #southeastasia
Myanmar's junta said on Sunday it would release more than 6,000 prisoners as part of an annual amnesty to mark the country's independence day. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/04/asia-pacific/myanmar-junta-release-6000-prisoners/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #asiapacific #myanmar #southeastasia
Global capital is coming back to Southeast Asia’s stock markets this month, positioning the cohort as one of the must-watch pockets of global finance for 2026. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/business/2025/12/29/southeast-asia-global-funds/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #business #southeastasia #stocks #ai
Indonesia and the U.S. have agreed on all substantial issues related to a tariff deal, paving the way for the signing of an agreement at the end of January, Indonesia's chief negotiator has said. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/business/2025/12/23/economy/indonesia-us-tariff-deal/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #business #economy #indonesia #us #trade #tariffs #southeastasia #donaldtrump
Southeast Asian foreign ministers are to meet in Malaysia with the aim of finding ways to help de-escalate the situation and end the fighting between Thailand and Cambodia that has killed at least 40 people. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/12/22/asia-pacific/asean-thailand-cambodia-meet/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #asiapacific #asean #thailand #cambodia #southeastasia #defense
China is dispatching a diplomat to Cambodia and Thailand as a new bout of violence between the two nations threatens to derail a ceasefire brokered by U.S. President Donald Trump. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/12/18/asia-pacific/china-mediate-thailand-cambodia/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #asiapacific #china #southeastasia #us #cambodia #thailand #donaldtrump
Myanmar's junta has reshaped its tactics by introducing conscription and expanding its drone fleet, enabling it to reclaim some territory after defeats or stalemates on the battlefield. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/12/17/asia-pacific/myanmar-junta-rebels-fighting-tactics/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #asiapacific #myanmar #southeastasia #drones
Thailand's military said it was considering blocking fuel exports to Cambodia as fighting between the two countries spread to coastal areas of a disputed border region. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/12/15/asia-pacific/politics/thailand-fuel-exports-cambodia/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #asiapacific #politics #thailand #cambodia #southeastasia #donaldtrump