Asia Times

The July 23 Xe-Pian Xe-Namnoy hydropower dam collapse that left at least 35 dead, 99 missing and 6,000 homeless in Attapeu province in southern Laos was an unprecedented manmade tragedy and wake-up call for the communist-run nation. Keep reading ...

In January, the World Bank announced in a statement that the Nam Theun 2 Environmental and Social and Project had closed on December 31. The ESP, a component of the US$1.3 billion Nam Theun 2 Hydropower Project in central Laos, was established in 2005 to ...

The Mekong River Commission (MRC) announced yesterday that Laos has formally notified the Commission of its intention to construct the Pak Lay dam on the mainstream of the Mekong River. The notification triggers commencement of the Prior Consultation procedure under the MRC’s Procedures for Notification, ...

China’s consolidation of the South China Sea remains the easiest component of its expansionist policy of pushing foreigners out of the eastern Pacific. The second phase of this consolidation is far more daunting, namely the control of the Mekong Delta and its diffused conglomerate of ...

A new city is fast emerging on the China-Laos border, a manifestation of China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) that if fully actualized will serve as Beijing’s new gateway to Southeast Asia. Once known for car smuggling and glitzy casinos catering to Chinese punters, the remote ...

Despite official pledges to halt the trade, smugglers in Cambodia and Laos are finding ways to illegally ship timber to neighboring Vietnam. The precious hardwood is often used in furniture factories that ship their products largely to China. []Located west of the Mekong River and covering ...

Myanmar and Thailand have announced plans for major gas power projects, as well as greater moves to adopt renewable energy sources. The news will cheer conservationists battling to prevent large dams being built on major rivers in the north of Myanmar. ...

Fake pharmaceuticals are continuing to flood into clinics and hospitals across Asia despite crackdowns by global counterfeiting hubs China and India, with suppliers simply crossing the border to less-regulated Mekong countries. The issue comes to light as global leaders descend on Vietnam for the Asia-Pacific ...

[] US President Donald Trump’s government, after all, had pledged to deeply cut development aid to several developing countries, including Cambodia, even before recent political tensions mounted.But the US and EU remain Cambodia’s largest trading partners and possible economic sanctions on the Southeast Asian nation, which ...

Long accused of complacency over the economic toll of cyber breaches, Southeast Asian governments are starting to make all the right noises on enhanced safeguards – but there are still few signs that the vulnerable business sector is getting the message. Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Myanmar, ...