Showing 1 - 10 of 235
Asean's regroup requires deep reforms
Oped, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 17/10/2025
» If Asean's 58 years thus far have been about resilience and playing a central organising role in promoting regional security and stability, its next decade will determine whether the Southeast Asian bloc can adapt and remain relevant. After the crises in Myanmar and along the Thai-Cambodian border, Asean's credibility has never been more in doubt. To regain its effectiveness as Southeast Asia's one and only agency, Asean needs to move away from the ritualistic diplomacy of mundane meetings to far-reaching reforms that chart new ways of making things work.
Anutin govt's options on global stage
Oped, Kavi Chongkittavorn, Published on 09/09/2025
» Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul has taken office minus the luxury of a honeymoon period. His government has only a four-month window to rewire and lay the foundations of foreign policy before parliament is dissolved due to its minority status, with an election scheduled for April 2026.
Paetongtarn and the price of weak govt
Oped, Kavi Chongkittavorn, Published on 02/09/2025
» The Constitutional Court's dismissal of Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra and her cabinet last Friday has plunged Thailand into a political poly-crisis.
Call for deeper integration in Asean as tariffs menace
Business, Nareerat Wiriyapong, Published on 10/07/2025
» Southeast Asian nations have taken steps to deepen economic integration within Asean and broaden collaboration with other regional groupings amid ongoing global uncertainty and disruptions from US tariffs, says Gan Kim Yong, Singapore's deputy prime minister and minister for trade and industry.
Thai-Vietnamese ties enter new phase
Oped, Kavi Chongkittavorn, Published on 17/06/2025
» Vietnam has made significant strides this year in building strong, comprehensive strategic partnerships (CSPs) with four key Asean nations -- Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore, and Malaysia. It is a notable achievement for Hanoi, reflecting its growing confidence and increasing political influence. Earlier batches of CSPs included global powers such as China, Russia, India, South Korea, Japan, the US, and Australia.
Work together for rule-based trade
Oped, Published on 20/05/2025
» For almost 80 years, the multilateral rule-book has been the basis for international trade relations. Under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) and its successor, the World Trade Organization (WTO), world trade has expanded at an unprecedented rate, contributing to growth and prosperity around the world. Our countries, Thailand and Sweden, share a long tradition of support for the rule-based trading system.
Thailand and NZ press on amid tariff turmoil
Anucha Charoenpo, Published on 11/04/2025
» Thailand and New Zealand have agreed to strengthen bilateral trade ties in all aspects through existing frameworks amid global trade challenges, which include the threat of high reciprocal tariffs in the United States.
The tyranny of anarchy and what to do
Oped, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 21/03/2025
» It is both exciting and alarming to be a student of international affairs as the world is being turned upside down. In just two months, the second administration of President Donald J Trump has sent shockwaves rippling through the international system as the United States pulls back from its role as leader, underwriter, and guardian of the nearly 80-year-old international order that it instrumentally constructed after WWII. In view of the US's portentous withdrawal, relative anarchy in the international system is back with a vengeance, leaving Asean members and smaller states elsewhere to fend for themselves in a self-help geostrategic environment.
Threatened by US, Canada hugs France and Britain close
AFP, Published on 17/03/2025
» MONTREAL - With Canada's economy and even sovereignty under unprecedented threat from its southern neighbour the United States, its new leader has embarked on a trans-Atlantic trip to strengthen ties with traditional friends France and Britain.
Britain joins trans-Pacific pact in biggest post-Brexit trade deal
Published on 15/12/2024
» LONDON - Britain officially became the 12th member of a trans-Pacific trade pact which includes Japan, Australia and Canada on Sunday as it seeks to deepen ties in the region and build its global trade links after leaving the European Union.