Laos
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Partnerships
Indo-Pacific Endeavour links Australia with Allies and Partners for military exercises, training
FORUM Staff Legal workshops on security issues hosted in Sri Lanka recently kicked off Indo-Pacific Endeavour 24 (IPE), Australia’s five-month engagement involving 14 countries across Southeast Asia and the northeast Indian Ocean. Australian ships, aircraft and personnel deployed to individual countries for military exercises, training, workshops, and cultural and athletic activities. IPE, which runs from August to December 2024, covers…
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Climate
Scientists Identify 380 More Species in Mekong Region
Radio Free Asia An aggressive color-changing lizard, a venomous snake named after a goddess in Chinese mythology and a camouflaging green frog found only in the forested limestone mountains of northeastern Vietnam were among the hundreds of plant and animal species discovered in the Mekong River region in the past two years, researchers announced in May 2023. Hundreds of scientists…
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Climate
PRC’s hydroelectric dams threaten Mekong River
FORUM Staff The Mekong River stretches nearly 5,000 kilometers from the Tibetan plateau, winding through Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and, ultimately, Vietnam’s Mekong Delta. The river, the longest in Southeast Asia, carries nutrient-rich sediment essential to the livelihoods of those who rely on the waterway for agriculture and fisheries. But the river is drying up. In recent years, its water…
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Culture & Custom
Laos trumpets return of Elephant Festival
Radio Free Asia Laos’ annual Elephant Festival returned in February 2023 after a three-year hiatus, with about 75 of the majestic animals taking part in a grand procession in an event that stressed the cultural ties between the mammals and communities and highlighted the elephants’ endangered status. The three-day festival in Xayaburi province, in northwestern Laos near the Thai border,…
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Partnerships
ASEAN exercise, naval chiefs meeting demonstrate unity, ‘voice for peace’
Maria T. Reyes Navies from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) member states displayed a united front in the South China Sea during the ASEAN Multilateral Naval Exercise (AMNEX) hosted by the Philippine Navy. The exercise, conducted May 12-15, 2023, consisted of shore and sea phases, including the simulated rescue of a cruise ship being harassed by pirates off…
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Global Commons
In ‘battery of Southeast Asia,’ citizens struggle to keep lights on
FORUM Staff As Laotians grapple with supercharged inflation that has spiked electricity prices nearly 30%, many wonder why energy and other necessities are so costly in a nation dubbed the “battery of Southeast Asia” for its dozens of hydropower dams. “Electricity rates are too high for ordinary people to afford,” a resident of Luang Prabang province told Radio Free Asia…
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Asymmetric Threats
One Road, Big Debts
Chinese Infrastructure Scheme Leaves Trail of Buyers’ Remorse
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Key Issues
General: Mekong River nations, U.S. strengthen partnership for sustainable water management
Maj. Gen. Diana M. Holland/U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Water is life. The need for this resource is universal, yet access to water is not guaranteed in many parts of the world. Together, the world faces new and evolving challenges. Climate change — and its anticipated effects such as prolonged droughts, changing weather patterns and food insecurity — will create…
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Key Issues
EU, Southeast Asia to hold first full summit amid security fears
Reuters European Union (EU) and Southeast Asian nations will hold their first full summit in December 2022, a sign that the two blocs are looking for closer ties amid concerns about security threats from the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and Russia, officials told Reuters. The summit, to be held in Brussels on December 14, 2022, is seen as a…
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Conflicts - Tensions
Russia-Ukraine war negatively impacts Russian arms sales to Southeast Asia
FORUM Staff Russia has remained one of the largest exporters of arms to Southeast Asia over the past two decades, but the value of its defense sales in the region has fallen sharply since 2014 — when Russia annexed Crimea — according to new report. And Russia’s invasion of Ukraine makes it more difficult for sales to rebound, leading to…
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