China
Trump says Xi told him China will not invade Taiwan while he is US president. In a Fox News interview, President Trump said Xi Jinping assured him China “will never” invade Taiwan while Trump is in office, adding that Xi “is very patient.” China’s embassy called Taiwan the “most important and sensitive” issue in U.S.–China ties and urged adherence to the one-China principle. A Taiwan ruling-party lawmaker welcomed U.S. support but warned security cannot rest on “the enemy’s promise.” Jasper Ward, Reuters, Aug 15
China reiterates support for Myanmar junta election. Wang Yi signaled backing for elections the junta says will be held in December, framing goals of peace, reconciliation and development. Beijing’s stance aligns with its strategic interests and follows prior outreach to Min Aung Hlaing; resistance groups and Western governments reject the polls as illegitimate. Maung Kavi, The Irrawaddy, Aug 15
Japan
South Korea, China criticize Japanese officials’ visit to Tokyo war shrine.
Seoul voiced “deep disappointment and regret” over Japanese politicians’ Yasukuni visits and urged “humble reflection” on wartime history ahead of President Lee Jae-myung’s planned Tokyo trip. Beijing summoned Japan’s envoy to protest, calling the visits provocative as Japan marked the 80th anniversary of WWII’s end. The Asahi Shimbun, Aug 16
US seeks shipbuilding expertise from South Korea and Japan to counter China. Senators Tammy Duckworth and Andy Kim are visiting Seoul and Tokyo to explore joint ventures to build and repair U.S. auxiliary vessels and speed maintenance in the Indo-Pacific. With Washington requesting $47 billion for shipbuilding, lawmakers cite U.S. capacity at 0.1% of global output versus China’s 53%. Recent moves include Hanwha Ocean’s repair of a U.S. Navy ship in Korea and South Korea’s proposal to invest $150 billion in U.S. yards. Albee Zhang, AP News, Aug 17
South Korea
Gov’t to unveil measures to restructure petrochemical industry. Seoul plans legal, administrative, and financial support to push portfolio adjustments and M&As amid a global glut and weak demand. Officials cited recent plant suspensions, a liquidity crisis at Yeochun NCC, and a BCG warning that nearly half of firms may not survive three years without restructuring. Kim Boram, Yonhap News Agency, Aug 17
North Korea
N. Korea cigarette smuggling operations hit hard by China crackdown. China’s State Tobacco Monopoly Administration and police have increased raids and data-tracking against unlicensed distribution, disrupting North Korean cigarette smuggling networks in border cities like Dandong, Hunchun and Changbai. Traders have halted dealings, cutting a key foreign-currency source for firms such as Korea Sinhung Trading and Amrokgang Tobacco. Seon Hwa, Daily NK, Aug 17
Vietnam
Vietnamese Deputy PM meets with Chinese, Cambodian, Thai officials in Yunnan. At the LMC ministers’ meeting sidelines, Deputy PM Bùi Thanh Sơn discussed boosting trade, transport links and border management with Yunnan’s Wang Ning (targeting US$5b in trade), raised support for Vietnamese communities in Cambodia with DPM Prak Sokhonn, and agreed with Thai FM Maris to advance the JCBC and “Three Connections” strategy. Vietnam News, Aug 17
Myanmar
China reiterates support for Myanmar junta election. Wang Yi signaled backing for elections the junta says will be held in December, framing goals of peace, reconciliation and development. Beijing’s stance aligns with its strategic interests and follows prior outreach to Min Aung Hlaing; resistance groups and Western governments reject the polls as illegitimate. Maung Kavi, The Irrawaddy, Aug 15
Cambodia
RBC meeting sees Thais raise demining, scam centres; Cambodia urges removal of barricades. At the Cambodia–Thailand Regional Border Committee in Trat, both sides agreed to form a coordination group to prevent clashes. Cambodia said demining depends on clear demarcation via the JBC, and called for halting barbed-wire installations and home demolitions on its side. Thailand raised cross-border scam concerns for a higher-level forum. Niem Chheng, The Phnom Penh Post, Aug 16
Indonesia
5.8 magnitude quake rocks Indonesia’s Sulawesi island. An undersea magnitude-5.8 quake struck 15 km north of Poso, Central Sulawesi, injuring 29 people and triggering at least 15 aftershocks. No tsunami warning was issued. Most casualties were churchgoers attending a Sunday service; authorities dispatched rapid-assessment teams and moved the injured to a regional hospital. Indonesia sits on the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” making damaging quakes common. Mohammad Taufan and Edna Tarigan, AP News, Aug 17
Solemn Independence Day ceremony in Nusantara despite absence of central officials. The Nusantara Capital Authority led a Flag Day ceremony with about 3,000 participants, including local leaders, students, and security personnel. Head Basuki Hadimuljono relayed a message to “continue IKN,” underscoring commitment to developing the new capital. The event proceeded smoothly with a public “People’s Festival” as a closing celebration. Yovanda Noni, Jakarta Globe, Aug 17
Thailand
Poll: Thais say they have lost hope in political parties. A NIDA survey of 1,310 people (Aug 13–14) found 41.91% “completely hopeless” and 34.19% “somewhat hopeless” about parties’ ability to solve national problems. A majority said they would not re-elect their constituency MP, and 40.46% would not vote for the same party-list choice as in 2023. Bangkok Post, Aug 17
Singapore
NDR 2025: PM Wong calls on Singaporeans to unite, write nation’s next chapter together. In his first post-election National Day Rally, PM Lawrence Wong prioritised jobs via town-level matching, SkillsFuture upgrades and a traineeship for graduates. He announced “Age Well Neighbourhoods,” tougher anti-vaping measures, online child-safety steps, new northern-region redevelopment and coastal-protection plans, urging collective responsibility amid global headwinds. Goh Yan Han, The Straits Times, Aug 17
Northeast Asia
Area studies gain ground in China’s educational institutions. Since the 2010s, China has rapidly expanded “area studies with Chinese characteristics” to serve national strategy. The Ministry of Education seeded dozens of training bases and hundreds of research centers; area studies became a first-level discipline in 2022, and new alliances (e.g., ASEAN Regional and Country Studies Alliance, 2025) coordinate output. While benefits include more regional expertise and endangered-language research, growth is tightly linked to Belt and Road goals and ideological messaging, raising questions about space for independent scholarship as academic-policy symbiosis deepens. Els van Dongen, East Asia Forum, Aug 16
Why Beijing thinks Nvidia’s H20 chip could be a spy tool. China’s cyberspace regulator summoned Nvidia over suspected “backdoor” or location-tracking risks in the H20 AI chip, weeks after Washington restored export licenses following rare-minerals negotiations. The scrutiny reflects Beijing’s security anxieties and leverage in the tech rivalry, even as Chinese firms remain dependent on Nvidia hardware and Huawei’s Ascend 910-series struggles to match performance. U.S. policy contradictions, reviving sales while lawmakers warn of military uses, add uncertainty. A proposed 15% revenue-sharing on China sales and ongoing probes (e.g., antitrust) could reshape supply chains, raise costs and accelerate China’s push for self-reliance. Akhmad Hanan, ThinkChina, Aug 15
PRC Industrial Policy in the U.S.–China Semiconductor Chip Competition. Beijing’s “Delete America” drive and massive state financing (the “Big Fund”) have delivered dominance in legacy nodes and reduced foreign dependence, while MIIT pushes state sectors to phase out foreign chips by 2027. U.S. export controls whipsawed in 2025, barring, then relicensing Nvidia’s H20 and AMD parts. China responded with security scrutiny of Nvidia. Intel/AMD revenues in China fell as Huawei gained share. The result: accelerating bifurcation. China leverages legacy strength and races up the stack; the U.S. tries to keep Chinese firms tethered to its ecosystem without handing over “the best stuff.” Eric Harwit, CHINA US Focus, Aug 15
The Yarlung Zangbo Project in China’s Clean Energy Diplomacy. China launched its trillion-yuan Yarlung Zangbo hydropower project (≈60 GW, ~300 TWh/year) in July 2025, positioning it as a pillar for green growth, AI-era power demand and cross-border electricity trade via UHV links to South and Southeast Asia. Beijing pledges ecological safeguards and no interception of downstream flow, but trust deficits with India/Bangladesh, seismic risks and governance hurdles (standards, pricing, sovereignty) could constrain exports. Competing grid visions and infrastructure gaps complicate regional integration; the project will test China’s ability to pair energy leadership with credible transboundary stewardship. Duan Haosheng, RSIS Commentary, Aug 15
Southeast Asia
What Can Timor-Leste Bring to ASEAN? Timor-Leste is poised to become ASEAN’s 11th member, with new survey data showing its elites’ priorities align with the region’s: climate change, inequality and jobs. Where Timorese views diverge is on great-power dynamics: higher trust in ASEAN, a stronger preference for the United States over China if forced to choose, and concern that ASEAN is becoming a stage for major-power rivalry. Respondents favor ASEAN taking principled, international-law–based positions (including on the South China Sea) and more proactive engagement on Myanmar, suggesting Dili could inject unity and norm-focus into ASEAN’s diplomacy. Julia Lau and Sharon Seah, FULCRUM, Aug 15
Bangladeshi rivers’ legal personhood meaningless without enforcement. Bangladesh’s 2019 High Court ruling granting rivers legal personhood has faltered in practice. The Appellate Division softened many binding directives into non-enforceable dicta, and the National River Conservation Commission lacks power and coherence across 35 agencies. Pollution, encroachment and destructive dredging persist; a list of 37,000 alleged grabbers remains unpublished. Without statutory reforms, empowered guardianship and inter-ministerial alignment, similar to akin to New Zealand’s Te Awa Tupua model, legal personhood remains symbolic. Amending the River Protection Act and instituting binding national guidelines would translate rights into protection. Galib Mahmud Pasha, East Asia Forum, Aug 16