During the Cold War, well-informed foreign journalists did not navely accept the Thai official narrative that the monarchy was strictly above politics. They were well aware of the influence and political power of the palace. However, they believed the institution was necessary for Thailand to survive the communist threat, oppressive military ......
Essays on the Politics of Haze and the Environment in Southeast Asia
Transboundary haze has been a recurring problem in the Southeast Asian region since at least 1982. Why does this toxic form of air pollution still persist? Helena Varkkey, a Malaysian political scientist, has been studying this multifaceted problem for more than fifteen years. This book provides an ideal collection for those who want a clear but ......
Similarities and Differences Between the Trump Administration and a Democrat White House
American Indo-Pacific policy will be driven by its China policy, regardless of whether there is a second-term Donald Trump administration or a first-term Joe Biden administration. The Republicans will continue to frame the major challenge as "balancing" against Chinese power and "countering" the worst aspects of Beijing's policies. Establishment ......
The Singapore Lecture Series was inaugurated in 1980 by the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies with a founding endowment from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), and augmented by a generous donation in 1983 from Exxon Mobil Asia Pacific. The Singapore Lecture is designed to provide the opportunity for distinguished statesmen, scholars, ......
The Philippine economy has grown rapidly since 2010, but despite this growth, poverty and inequality remain high. Two-thirds of the poor live in rural areas, and the weak performance of the agriculture sector has contributed to the slow improvement in livelihoods. The challenge for agriculture will further increase, with climate change posing a ......
Energy security has become a central concern for all the countries in the Asian region and the search for sufficient sources of energy to fuel economic growth has drastically influenced relations among the South Asian countries as well as their respective relations with their neighbours China, Myanmar, Iran, and Afghanistan. The recent nuclear ......
In June 2009, the ASEAN Studies Centre of the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies and the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung organized ISEAS' annual roundtable, this time on the subject of ""The Global Economic Crisis: Implications for ASEAN"". The roundtable concluded that the crisis had a significant impact on the region, and ASEAN needed to have a ......
Vietnamese nationalism has a strong undercurrent of anti-China sentiments, and Vietnam's leaders have regularly tapped into such sentiments to shore up their legitimacy and boost Vietnamese nationalism. Over the last decade, the helter-skelter growth of social media has bred new popular actors in Vietnamese cybersphere, who are deeply ......
The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) is comprised of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Possessing a significant share of the world's oil and gas reserves and including some of the world's fastest growing economies, the GCC is a significant regional grouping. As with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations ......
