News

The Diplomat, in collaboration with concerned stakeholders around the world, is launching a new series entitled “Southeast Asia: Refugees in Crisis.” In May 2015, thousands of Rohingya refugees from the Rakhine State of Myanmar and economic migrants from Bangladesh were found stranded in the Strait of ...

Big-name clothing brands sourcing from Myanmar have waded into the minimum wage debate, urging its implementation even as their own suppliers dispute the proposed salary and request an exemption from the law. At the end of June 2015, the government moved to implement the 2013 Minimum ...

By banning alcohol sales near universities and technical colleges, Thailand is putting the nation at the forefront of efforts in Asia to curb booze consumption. Under amendments to the Alcohol Control Act endorsed by the government and to be implemented nationwide, bars, clubs and retailers will ...

Cambodia will continue to seek to be a mediator in South China Sea disputes between China and Asean nations, Cambodian Foreign Affairs Minister Hor Namhong has said. Speaking to reporters after meeting with China’s newly appointed ambassador to Asean, Xu Bu, Hor Namhong said Cambodia would ...

  China has lodged a diplomatic protest with Myanmar after a court in the southeast Asian nation sentenced 153 Chinese nationals to life imprisonment for illegal logging. China’s voracious demand for Myanmar’s raw materials has fuelled resentment in Myanmar towards its giant northern neighbor. Regions along Myanmar’s porous border with China have ...

Residents near the Xebangfay River between the two provinces of Khammuan and Savannakhet are still being spared from the flooding which has started since the river began overflowing on 21 July. A Xebangfay district official Mr Sisomphone Innoula told Vientiane Times that the four branches of ...

Cooperation between Vietnam and Thailand has been comprehensively flourishing, demonstrating the growing efficiency and importance of their strategic partnership, said leaders of the two countries.   Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung and his Thai counterpart Prayuth Chan-ocha said at their retreat talks and the joint Cabinet ...

Thaicom Plc’s mobile operating unit in Laos has seen its licence extended for another 25 years, six years before the expiry of the original contract. Thailand’s sole satellite service provider expects the extension granted to its joint venture company, Lao Telecom, to cement its leadership in the ...

Protected areas and other biodiversity hotspots across Southeast Asia are increasingly under threat from expanding rubber plantations, with Cambodia at risk of losing more ecologically important land than any of its neighbours, a recent study reports. According to the study, if current trends continue, Cambodia stands ...

Plans to build an 800-megawatt coal power plant near some of Thailand’s most popular beaches have sparked protests and a hunger strike by activists who say officials aren’t considering its impact on the pristine environment that makes the area an international tourist destination. More than 100 members ...