Emily de La Bruyère argues that South Korea's tightening of technological/industrial ties with #China threatens to erode #SouthKorea’s long-term economic/strategic positioning. She highlights the benefits for Seoul of partnerships with the United States. bit.ly/4yB5btu

"China opposed on Thursday 'using Cold War mentality' to stoke conflict over the Arctic, after the European Union linked Beijing's cooperation with Russia in the region to security concerns." www.france24.com/en/live-news...

China slams 'Cold War mentality' after new EU Arctic plan

China opposed on Thursday "using Cold War mentality" to stoke conflict over the Arctic, after the European Union linked Beijing's cooperation with Russia in the region to security concerns.

france24.com

REGISTER NOW for NBR's 3-day executive education course on China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) on December 1–3, in Washington, D.C. See the list of sessions and instructors and learn more here: bit.ly/4ix99hT #ChineseMilitary #PLA

China is "becoming much more active in projecting that power by establishing military bases abroad. The latest is at Ban Keun Airport near Vientiane, where China has established a joint support and training facility with Laos," writes NBR advisor @raji143.bsky.social bit.ly/4ywol3y

Expanding the Military Footprint: China’s New Air Base in Laos

Establishment of the Laotian base follows a pattern in China’s growing external military presence and access.

bit.ly

"Procedure is as important as penalties. A November 2025 National Bureau of Asian Research (NBR) report based on interviews with U.S. firms that had faced repeated KFTC investigations identifies a consistent set of complaints..." itif.org/publications...

South Korea’s Antitrust Regime Burdens American Innovators

KFTC enforcement data suggests de facto bias against leading American technology companies. Given this record, U.S. policymakers should demand fair treatment for U.S. firms, and South Korean policymak...

itif.org

"The United States today announced a $17 million investment to digitize operations at the Port of Colombo, strengthening one of South Asia’s busiest and most strategic maritime trade hubs." lk.usembassy.gov/u-s-announce...

U.S. Announces $17 Million Investment to Modernize Port of Colombo

lk.usembassy.gov

"Thailand, Southeast Asia's second-largest economy, has grown by an average of only 2.34% a year over the last five years, lagging regional peers that have recovered more swiftly ​from the pandemic." www.reuters.com/world/asia-p...

Nearly 30 years after IMF rescue, Thailand faces new economic test

Ekniti Nitithanprapas was a young graduate student in the United States when Thailand devalued the baht in 1997, setting off the Asian financial ​crisis.

reuters.com

NBR advisor Dennis Blair (director of national intelligence under former U.S. President Barack Obama) "...praised Taiwan's decision in recent years to transform its large-scale annual military exercises into a whole-of-society defense effort." focustaiwan.tw/politics/202...

Ex-U.S. national intelligence director praises Han Kuang reforms - Focus Taiwan

Dennis Blair, director of national intelligence under former U.S. President Barack Obama, on Wednesday praised Taiwan's decision in recent years to transform its large-scale annual military exercises ...

focustaiwan.tw

"The New Yalu River Bridge, the largest border crossing connecting China and North Korea, had its grand opening on Thursday." www.nytimes.com/video/world/...

Video: North Korea and China’s Biggest Border Bridge Opens

The New Yalu River Bridge, the largest border crossing connecting China and North Korea, had its grand opening on Thursday.

nytimes.com

"China is warning residents near the Russian border to take precautions against potential plague risk following reports of a laboratory worker’s unexplained death in Siberia." www.youtube.com/watch?v=jwz_...

China Warns of Plague Risk Near Russian Border | China in Focus

YouTube video by China in Focus - NTD

youtube.com

Op-ed by NBR advisor Chun In-Bum in the Korea Times on OPCON transfer: www.koreatimes.co.kr/amp/opinion/...

OPCON transfer: Is Seoul prepared to pay the price? - The Korea Times

In November, Americans will go to the polls in an election that could have consequences far beyond their borders. The midterm elections will determ...

koreatimes.co.kr

"A June 2026 report by the National Bureau of Asian Research (NBR) shows low South Korean confidence in US commitment, while also showing high support (70% as of 2024) for having nuclear weapons." asiatimes.com/2026/10/sout...

South Korea's hypersonic leap runs into North Korea's nuclear wall - Asia Times

South Korea's maiden flight test of a domestic hypersonic glide vehicle highlights an accelerating bid to field counterstrike assets capable of bolstering

asiatimes.com

NBR nonresident fellow K. Tristan Tang coauthored a commentary in @thediplomat.com on Taiwan's military preparedness: thediplomat.com/2026/10/miss...

Missing the Forest for the Trees in Taiwan’s Defense Preparations

Beyond exercises and equipment, strategic developments in Taiwan’s military preparedness are being overlooked.

thediplomat.com

NBR nonresident fellow Kei Koga @k-since2024.bsky.social is quoted in CNBC on the retreat of Japanese companies from China: www.cnbc.com/2026/10/05/j...

‘Unwelcome and unsafe’: Why Japanese companies are retreating from China at a historic rate

Japanese companies are leaving China at record pace, as a diplomatic freeze and a slowing economy force businesses to reassess their presence.

cnbc.com

NBR nonresident fellow Lev Nachman (@lnachman32.bsky.social) writes on Taiwan's upcoming local elections in the Diplomat : thediplomat.com/2026/10/taiw...

Taiwan’s Local Elections Are Not About China, President Lai, or the United States

Candidates across Taiwan are campaigning on local issues that vary by city – not topics like cross-strait relations. What can we learn from these elections?

thediplomat.com

NBR will offer its next executive education course on China’s PLA on Dec 1–3. The course is tailored to meet the needs of military and civilian practitioners, industry leaders, and research professionals working on China-related security issues. bit.ly/4AxRzRX

M. Waffaa Kharisma argues that Indonesia’s next generation of political leaders and their views on foreign politics will be increasingly defined by a growing acceptance of the need for strategic resilience and autonomy in a volatile global order. nbr.org/publication/... #Indonesia

Leonard C. Sebastian and Nauval El Ghifari argue that Indonesia’s emerging generation of political leaders is less tolerant of ambiguity that lacks results and that it is beginning to reshape the terms under which strategic autonomy is practiced. nbr.org/publication/...

"In a reshuffle, Prabowo named Indonesia's former permanent representative to ‌the United Nations in New York, Arrmanatha Nasir, as the new foreign minister, with the outgoing Sugiono appointed coordinating minister for human development." www.reuters.com/world/asia-p...

Indonesia's Prabowo appoints new foreign minister

Indonesia's President Prabowo Subianto replaced his foreign minister with a career diplomat on Thursday, his second senior cabinet change ​in less than three weeks.

reuters.com

"Today, regrettably, there hardly exist any meaningful and institutionalized channels between the two governments and security establishments. Thus the relationship remains intrinsically unstable," writes NBR advisor David Shambaugh in China-U.S. Focus: www.chinausfocus.com/foreign-poli...

A Turning Point? Rebuilding the U.S.-China Relationship

The May and September reciprocal state visits by U.S. President Donald Trump and China’s President Xi Jinping have seemingly succeeded in cementing warm personal ties between the two leaders while sta...

chinausfocus.com

NBR will offer its next executive education course on China’s People's Liberation Army on Dec 1–3. The course is tailored to meet the needs of military and civilian practitioners, industry leaders, and research professionals working on China-related security issues. Learn more/apply! bit.ly/4AxRzRX

Mendee Jargalsaikhan provides background on the China-Mongolia-Russia Economic Corridor, considers how it differs from China’s other major economic corridors, and discusses the impact on Mongolia and its relationship with China. strategicspace.nbr.org/the-china-mo... #China #Mongolia #Russia

NBR is pleased to announce the 2026–27 Japan-U.S. Cyber Policy Fellows: Kyosuke Kitaichi, Yuki Kurihara, Rintaro Nishimura, Takaya Shibagaki, and Kanna Yoshioka. Check out their bios and learn more about the fellowship! www.nbr.org/japan-u-s-cy...

Bates Gill: "I think President Trump's greatest interest in having this meeting is simply to sort of demonstrate that he can have high-level summitry with countries that he obviously respects or believes to be near co-equals." www.africanews.com/amp/2026/09/...

NBR nonresident fellow Husan Chahal was quoted in a New York Times story on attitudes toward #artificialintelligence of people in countries across the globe as measured by Gallup polls. www.nytimes.com/2026/09/23/w...

Outside the ‘Worried West,’ Many Feel Good About A.I.

A Gallup poll found that a majority of people surveyed across 37 countries said they were curious or excited about artificial intelligence, more than scared or worried.

nytimes.com

Lucy Best offers background on #Taiwan’s upcoming November 28 elections, which will determine more than 11,000 local executive and legislative offices, and identifies contests to watch and dynamics that shape local races and those that drive national elections: www.nbr.org/publication/...

NBR senior advisor Aaron Friedberg is interviewed on this week's Trump-Xi summit, the perspectives and objectives of China's leadership, U.S.-China relations, and China's economy: www.youtube.com/live/RvGCPWO...

China | Studio 2 from WHYY | 9/23/26

YouTube video by WHYY

youtube.com

"On Oct. 1, the Air Force will eliminate all 10 civilian positions at the China Aerospace Studies Institute, the Air University center that publishes unclassified research on the People’s Liberation Army’s air, space and missile forces." www.defensenews.com/air/2026/09/...

Air Force, civilian staff dispute status of China Aerospace Studies Institute

CASI's director said the move will effectively end the institute, even as the service says CASI’s mission will continue.

defensenews.com

@rollandnadege.bsky.social was interviewed by Voice of America Chinese, discussing #XiJinping's absence from the UN General Assembly in New York and Beijing's priorities for the U.S.-China bilateral relationship heading into the Trump-Xi summit in Washington, DC: www.voachinese.com/a/xi-skips-u...

习近平缺席联大专赴华盛顿，北京凸显对美关系优先

当世界各国领导人本周齐聚纽约参加第81届联合国大会高级别周时，中国国家主席习近平将不会出席一般性辩论，而是前往华盛顿与美国总统特朗普举行峰会。中国政府星期二(9月22日)宣布，中国国家副主席韩正将代表中国赴纽约出席联大一般性辩论。 这一安排凸显出北京同时运作的两个外交层次：韩正在联合国继续宣传中国对多边主义、发展和全球治理的立场，而习近平本人则把最高层外交重心放在处理对北京最具战略影响的双边关系-...

voachinese.com

“The challenge is that there’s some really significant disagreements on how to manage those risks, and whether AI governance can be separated from the broader strategic U.S.-China competition.” | NBR advisor Alison Szalwinski @aliszali.bsky.social www.abc27.com/news/top-sto...

AI fears burst onto Trump-Xi agenda, but challenges abound

Apocalyptic warnings about the danger of uncontrolled artificial intelligence are adding new urgency to talks between President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping set for next week.  Trump…

abc27.com