Showing 1 - 10 of 44
Myanmar's robbery of a democracy
Oped, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 24/04/2026
» Five long years after Myanmar's military seized power on 1 Feb 2021, what has taken place in recent weeks amounts to a delayed fait accompli. Led by Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, then commander-in-chief of the armed forces, the coup diverged from its traditional playbook seen in 1962 and 1988, when tanks rolled and the military ruled by brute force. This time, the takeover nearly unravelled amid a nationwide uprising that evolved into a civil war, waged by an armed and determined resistance comprising the civilian-led National Unity Government (NUG), the People's Defence Forces (PDFs), and a constellation of Ethnic Armed Organisations (EAOs).
America risks grand folly in Iran war
Oped, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 06/03/2026
» It is just the first week of the joint attack between the United States and Israel on the Islamic Republic of Iran, but the repercussions from the Middle East for the Indo-Pacific are already discernible.
'Scam-gate' deserves full accounting
Oped, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 24/10/2025
» The explosive revelations and allegations of regional cybercrimes and scam networks have hit Thailand head-on and placed the government of Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul in an awkward and defensive position. As more facts surrounding what looks like a labyrinthine cross-border multibillion-dollar transnational criminal ring come to light, more questions have surfaced with no clear answers. The Anutin government needs to come clean and avoid a "scam-gate" of cover-ups and lies at the expense of countless scammed victims across many countries.
Flawed Asean needs to regain footing
Oped, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 10/10/2025
» Nearly six decades after its founding, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) finds itself back where it began -- divided, uncertain, and vulnerable to the influence of major powers. Once hailed as a model for regional cooperation in the developing world, Asean now faces a crisis of purpose. Unless it can rediscover the unity and collective way forward that defined its early decades, Southeast Asia's flagship institution risks slipping into irrelevance.
Southeast Asia amid the US-China rift
Oped, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 03/10/2025
» The rivalry between the United States and China has become the defining contest of the 21st century. Barely two decades ago, Washington and Beijing were partners in prosperity. America's support for China's entry into the World Trade Organization in 2001 epitomised the high-water mark of engagement, reflecting the belief that economic integration would lead to greater political cooperation. Today, that partnership has morphed into suspicion and confrontation. Relations between the United States and China have deteriorated so swiftly that many observers now describe them as locked in a "new Cold War". The more pressing question, however, is not whether this analogy holds, but whether confrontation can be managed short of outright conflict.
Thailand needs a geostrategic rebalance
Oped, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 06/06/2025
» With two military coups and multiple judicial interventions that combined to subvert election results and weaken democratic institutions over the past two decades, it is unsurprising that Thailand's geostrategic position has leaned increasingly towards China. Naturally, the more Thailand becomes autocratic, the more it will be estranged from established democracies in Europe and North America, as well as Japan and South Korea, with nowhere to turn but to Beijing. But this China orientation is a geostrategic mistake at this time. Thailand should correct its course until clearer signs emerge as to which side of the superpower struggle will come out on top.
A perilous era of absolute advantage
News, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 25/04/2025
» If a date had to be pinpointed, the post-Second World War international system came to an unmistakable end on April 2 -- the so-called "Liberation Day" -- when US President Donald Trump announced comprehensive "reciprocal" tariffs to a bewildered global audience. The blatantly protectionist move was equivalent to the United States' abrogation and abandonment of the rules-based international order that it ironically and instrumentally constructed and upheld over nearly eight decades. What comes now is a dangerous era of absolute advantage in global trade, investment, and finance, bent on unilateralism over multilateralism, competition over cooperation, nationalism over interdependence, and the singular quest to dominate and reshape the global pecking order under the rubric of making America "great again".
Thailand lags in the global trade war
Oped, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 11/04/2025
» Thailand is fast isolating itself from the international community and falling behind in the emerging geoeconomic warfare to the detriment of its economy and people. The elected government of Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra is ironically coming up with outcomes that resemble those of the military administration a decade ago. Thailand must now move quickly to contain policy damage and restore its international standing to navigate and come out of the intensifying geoeconomic war in as decent a shape as possible.
Uyghurs deportation a strategic risk
Oped, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 07/03/2025
» Regardless of official spin, the government's decision to deport 40 Uyghurs to China was a strategic mistake on multiple levels.
What's happened to the Asian Century?
Oped, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 14/02/2025
» Until recently, the "Asian Century" seemed a compelling narrative but now it is not what it used to be. It was supposed to herald a shift in global economic power from the West to the East, driven by China's rapid rise, India's economic dynamism, and the broader development of Asia. But a quarter of the way into the 21st century, the promise of Asian dominance appears less certain. The enduring technological and economic might of the United States, coupled with its geopolitical backlash against China, has lowered expectations. While Asia remains formidable, the trajectory of global power is open and fluid, with potential dominance shifting not necessarily to any nation or region but perhaps to a non-state entity.