https://www.scmp.com/rss/325300/feed en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Nayan Seth,Fan Chen Nayan Seth,Fan Chen The global energy crisis stemming from the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz has added complexity to already competitive China-India maritime relations. The bottleneck in the Gulf has disrupted the provision of vital supplies of oil, gas and fertilisers to Asia, underscoring the fragility of global supply chains and the significance of trade chokepoints. Amid uncertainty over the Strait of Hormuz’s reopening, India’s US$10 billion plan to transform remote Great Nicobar Island into a... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3355108/what-indias-unsinkable-aircraft-carrier-project-near-malacca-means-its-china-ties?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3355108/what-indias-unsinkable-aircraft-carrier-project-near-malacca-means-its-china-ties?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 28 May 2026 03:10:50 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse A Cambodian court sentenced six Chinese men, reportedly from a scam-linked crime ring, to life in prison on Wednesday for the murder of a South Korean student last year. The torture and killing of the college student in Cambodia sparked a public outcry in South Korea, which dispatched a task force to the Southeast Asian nation in an effort to jointly tackle transnational cyberscam networks. The multibillion-dollar scam industry ballooned in Cambodia in recent years, with thousands of foreign... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3355087/cambodia-jails-6-chinese-men-south-korean-students-torture-and-murder?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3355087/cambodia-jails-6-chinese-men-south-korean-students-torture-and-murder?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 27 May 2026 17:15:16 +0000 Aidan Jones Aidan Jones One of the two Samoan men arrested by Vietnamese police over the killing of an Australian with reported links to Sydney’s criminal underworld outside a restaurant in Ho Chi Minh City has admitted that he was hired to carry out a hit on a rival. Lorenzo Lemalu, 24, was gunned down outside the restaurant last Thursday, in a rare gangland murder involving foreigners using Vietnam as a base for their crime. Shocking images of the shooting caught on CCTV show flashes from a gun wielded by a hooded... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3355062/samoan-suspect-confesses-hired-hit-vietnam-sydney-gangster?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3355062/samoan-suspect-confesses-hired-hit-vietnam-sydney-gangster?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 27 May 2026 11:21:22 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Cambodia’s acting head of state, former prime minister Hun Sen, pardoned opposition leader Kem Sokha on Monday from a sentence of almost three decades for treason. Kem Sokha, who was convicted of trying to topple the former long-ruling leader’s government and sentenced to 27 years, “is pardoned”, Hun Sen posted on social media alongside a royal decree signed by him. Hun Sen, who ruled Cambodia for nearly four decades, stepped down as prime minister in 2023 and handed power to his eldest son, Hun... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3354806/hun-sen-pardons-detained-cambodia-opposition-leader-kem-sokha?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3354806/hun-sen-pardons-detained-cambodia-opposition-leader-kem-sokha?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 25 May 2026 15:05:54 +0000 Biman Mukherji Biman Mukherji Southeast Asia has been planning a unified electricity grid since 1997. Now, nearly 30 years later, its leaders are giving renewed impetus to the push to get energy flowing seamlessly across borders and seabeds. In Cebu earlier this month, leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations put the power grid’s development high on their summit agenda, aiming to better insulate the region against the next big energy shock. But as regional governments try to turn the decades-long dream of an... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3354531/shock-absorber-will-aseans-power-grid-be-task-2045?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3354531/shock-absorber-will-aseans-power-grid-be-task-2045?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 25 May 2026 00:00:14 +0000 SCMP Editorial SCMP Editorial It’s not the kind of list that Hong Kong wants to top. But it may be the price we pay for being a premier financial hub. In a massive crackdown by law enforcement agencies from 10 jurisdictions on international scams, some US$752 million in losses have been identified, with Hong Kong accounting for 42 per cent of the total. Hong Kong police worked with their counterparts from Brunei, Canada, Indonesia, Macau, Malaysia, the Maldives, Singapore, South Korea and Thailand. Together, some 3,200... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/comment/article/3354507/hong-kong-should-spare-no-effort-fight-against-financial-crime?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/comment/article/3354507/hong-kong-should-spare-no-effort-fight-against-financial-crime?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 24 May 2026 22:45:06 +0000 Edith Lin Edith Lin The expanded second passenger terminal at Hong Kong International Airport is set to open its doors to travellers on Wednesday, offering 25 new shopping and dining options. While travellers must still take an autonomous people mover to Terminal 1 for departures after checking in at Terminal 2, the revamped facility promises a number of conveniences. The South China Morning Post explores how travellers can make the most of the dining and shopping options. 1. What dining options are available? The... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3354670/what-eat-and-buy-hong-kong-airports-revamped-terminal-2?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3354670/what-eat-and-buy-hong-kong-airports-revamped-terminal-2?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 24 May 2026 08:30:15 +0000 Maria Siow Maria Siow Thailand’s navy has to watch two seas at once. To the east lies the Gulf of Thailand, with its busy shipping lanes, offshore energy interests and long coastal frontier with Cambodia. To the west is the Andaman Sea, a gateway to the Indian Ocean with its own trade routes, chokepoints and strategic pressures. That twin-sea geography has long given the Royal Thai Navy a role larger than its public profile might suggest. It also underpins the navy’s stated goal, laid out in a 2023 white paper, to... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3354523/budget-cuts-leave-thailands-twin-sea-navy-risk-falling-behind?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3354523/budget-cuts-leave-thailands-twin-sea-navy-risk-falling-behind?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 24 May 2026 00:00:11 +0000 Phoebe Zhang Phoebe Zhang Cambodian authorities raided two buildings in Phnom Penh’s Prince Plaza Centre linked to the extradited Chinese billionaire Chen Zhi and detained 104 individuals, including 82 Chinese nationals, local media reported. Governments around the world have intensified their crackdown on Chen’s alleged multibillion-dollar online scam empire since his arrest earlier this year. The Cambodian raid, a joint operation by Phnom Penh police, the country’s Commission for Combating Technology-Based Scams... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3354331/cambodia-raids-buildings-linked-chen-zhi-chinese-billionaire-accused-scam-empire?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3354331/cambodia-raids-buildings-linked-chen-zhi-chinese-billionaire-accused-scam-empire?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 21 May 2026 05:47:54 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse A surge in arrests of suspected foreign scammers in Sri Lanka has authorities concerned that the island is fast becoming a hub for online crime, following sweeping crackdowns in hotspots Cambodia and Myanmar. Officials say some scam networks forced out of countries in Southeast Asia have simply shifted to new bases, increasingly moving operations to Sri Lanka – an attractive destination due to a relaxed visa regime and reliable, high-speed internet. Since the start of the year, police have... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3353862/next-stop-sri-lanka-how-scammers-fleeing-cambodia-myanmar-found-new-hub?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3353862/next-stop-sri-lanka-how-scammers-fleeing-cambodia-myanmar-found-new-hub?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 17 May 2026 06:37:49 +0000 SCMP Reporters SCMP Reporters A Hong Kong court has ordered the freezing of properties and assets worth more than HK$9 billion (US$1.15 billion) held by detained Chinese-born Cambodian businessman Chen Zhi and companies and individuals tied to him, the South China Morning Post has learned. A source told the SCMP on Thursday that the High Court had ordered a restriction on such properties earlier this month following an application from the Department of Justice involving Chen, who is accused of running a sprawling online... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3353556/hong-kong-court-freezes-hk9-billion-assets-properties-linked-chen-zhi?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3353556/hong-kong-court-freezes-hk9-billion-assets-properties-linked-chen-zhi?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 14 May 2026 08:53:44 +0000 Resty Woro Yuniar Resty Woro Yuniar Indonesia’s latest wave of police raids has exposed signs that online gambling and scam syndicates, squeezed out of traditional hubs such as Cambodia and Myanmar, are trying to turn Southeast Asia’s biggest economy into a new base. Analysts warned that Indonesia’s porous visa regime, weak law enforcement and welcoming attitude towards foreigners had made it an attractive destination for syndicates looking to avoid scrutiny. Authorities have arrested hundreds of foreign nationals in Jakarta,... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3353275/police-raids-reveal-indonesia-new-hub-scam-syndicates?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3353275/police-raids-reveal-indonesia-new-hub-scam-syndicates?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 12 May 2026 10:30:05 +0000 Jonathan Vit Jonathan Vit The prison cell, it turns out, is no obstacle to running a criminal empire. All you need is a smartphone, an encrypted messaging app and an overwhelmed corrections system, even if it is thousands of kilometres away. That was the conclusion law enforcement officials in South Korea and Japan reached after tracing a string of drug deals, home invasions and brazen robberies to inmates already serving time in the Philippines. The cases exposed a darkly inventive new chapter in Southeast Asia’s... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3353095/how-philippine-prison-kingpins-ran-japan-south-korea-crime-rings?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3353095/how-philippine-prison-kingpins-ran-japan-south-korea-crime-rings?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 11 May 2026 04:25:09 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press More than 300 foreign nationals were arrested in a raid on an alleged online gambling operation in the Indonesian capital of Jakarta, police said on Saturday, in one of the country’s largest crackdowns on illegal digital betting networks. The 321 foreigners, mainly from Vietnam, were arrested at a commercial building near the city’s Chinatown section that investigators described as a hub for more than 70 online gambling websites, targeting players outside Indonesia, based on marketing records... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3353062/321-foreigners-arrested-indonesia-online-gambling-crackdown?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3353062/321-foreigners-arrested-indonesia-online-gambling-crackdown?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 10 May 2026 14:07:53 +0000 Jean Iau Jean Iau Deeper economic cooperation between China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations will hinge on whether a code can be laid down to govern maritime territory and activity in the South China Sea, Philippine leader Ferdinand Marcos Jnr has said. “We cannot institutionalise any of those things until the code of conduct is finalised,” he told a press conference on Friday at the close of the 48th Asean summit in Cebu, when asked about aspects that held the most potential in relations between... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3352954/asean-step-push-south-china-sea-code-energy-security?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3352954/asean-step-push-south-china-sea-code-energy-security?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 08 May 2026 14:22:40 +0000 Sam Beltran Sam Beltran The spectre of the global energy crisis loomed over the three-day Asean summit in the Philippines as regional leaders converge for a final day of talks in Cebu on Friday. Analysts say that while some major flashpoints were addressed – with Thailand and Cambodia’s joint statement of solidarity being a bright spot – surging fuel costs as a result of the Iran war weighed heaviest on the minds of Southeast Asian leaders. The fuel crisis was the “defining issue”, said Vu Lam, an Asean observer and... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3352850/energy-crisis-dominates-asean-summit-forcing-long-standing-issues-back-burner?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3352850/energy-crisis-dominates-asean-summit-forcing-long-standing-issues-back-burner?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 08 May 2026 05:17:18 +0000 Bloomberg Bloomberg Sentiment is warming among some Southeast Asian members towards easing Myanmar’s isolation five years after a coup, with diplomats signalling a possible opening to bring the crisis-torn nation back into the fold. Southeast Asian foreign ministers have agreed to a virtual meeting with their Myanmar counterpart, according to Asean’s secretary general on Thursday. In an interview during the Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit ‌in the Philippines on Thursday, Kao Kim Hourn said Myanmar had... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3352831/asean-members-warm-towards-myanmar-raising-hopes-it-could-come-cold?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3352831/asean-members-warm-towards-myanmar-raising-hopes-it-could-come-cold?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 08 May 2026 02:18:28 +0000 Reuters Reuters The leaders of Thailand and Cambodia agreed on Thursday to pursue trust-building measures to advance a fragile ceasefire and establish peace, after rare talks over last year’s deadly fighting between the two neighbours. Troops remain deployed ‌on both sides of their long-disputed 817km (508-mile) border after battles in July and December when skirmishes quickly escalated into air strikes and heavy exchanges of artillery and rockets. The Philippines, which is hosting Asean meetings on the island... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3352802/thailand-cambodia-pledge-forge-lasting-peace-asean-meet-after-border-clashes?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3352802/thailand-cambodia-pledge-forge-lasting-peace-asean-meet-after-border-clashes?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 07 May 2026 14:32:59 +0000 Reuters Reuters Thailand on ⁠Tuesday cancelled a long-standing agreement ⁠with Cambodia to work towards joint offshore ⁠energy exploration, Thailand’s prime minister said, defying calls from its neighbour to stay the course on the 25-year-old pact. The Thai cabinet’s cancellation of the 2001 agreement, which seeks to develop a framework to jointly explore hydrocarbons in parts of the Gulf of Thailand ‌where the claims of Thailand and Cambodia overlap, had long been expected and follows two rounds of armed... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3352487/thailand-scraps-25-year-old-agreement-cambodia-joint-energy-exploration?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3352487/thailand-scraps-25-year-old-agreement-cambodia-joint-energy-exploration?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 05 May 2026 08:32:49 +0000 Aidan Jones Aidan Jones Authorities in Thailand are unravelling a “phantom birth’’ racket involving possibly hundreds of babies – mainly Chinese – falsely registered as Thais by corrupt officials so that their parents can gain land and company ownership rights. Scores of birth certificates have come under scrutiny, with several officials arrested for suspected bribery in a scam that first came to light in northern Chiang Mai but has since clustered around a Bangkok suburb and northeastern Nakhon Ratchasima... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3352440/phantom-birth-scam-spooks-thailand-hundreds-babies-get-fake-citizenship?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3352440/phantom-birth-scam-spooks-thailand-hundreds-babies-get-fake-citizenship?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 05 May 2026 04:07:50 +0000 Sam Beltran Sam Beltran Singapore and Thailand ranked among the world’s “least miserable” economies in an annual index compiled by a Johns Hopkins University economist, who said Southeast Asia was one of the “healthiest economic neighbourhoods” in the world. The 2025 Hanke’s Annual Misery Index (HAMI), compiled by applied economics professor Steve Hanke, measures the “economic temperature” of a country and seeks to approximate how its average citizen experiences the economy. This year’s HAMI found that several... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3352182/why-singapore-thailand-are-among-worlds-happiest-economies?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3352182/why-singapore-thailand-are-among-worlds-happiest-economies?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 01 May 2026 12:58:39 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Perched on the bow of his long-tail fishing boat, 75-year-old Sukjai Yana untangled a handful of small fish from his net, disappointed by his catch and fretting over whether he can sell them. Some days Sukjai earns nothing: demand for fish is falling due to worries over contamination of the Mekong River and its tributaries by toxic run-off from rare earth mines upstream that is threatening millions who rely on those waters for farms and fisheries. Chiang Saen, a fishing hub in northern Thailand,... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3351881/southeast-asias-mekong-river-being-poisoned-rare-earth-mining?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3351881/southeast-asias-mekong-river-being-poisoned-rare-earth-mining?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 29 Apr 2026 11:22:04 +0000 Joseph Sipalan Joseph Sipalan Being a Malaysian Indian is apparently a good indication that you are unlikely to fall for a scam. Police have found that potential victims from the ethnic group are more than likely to frustrate scammers with a barrage of questions. Malaysians lost an estimated 2.7 billion ringgit (US$684 million) to online scams last year alone, according to data from cybersecurity firm Fortinet Malaysia – a 76 per cent increase from the previous year – as syndicates adopt increasingly sophisticated methods... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3351807/malaysian-indians-least-likely-be-scammed-they-ask-too-many-questions-police?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3351807/malaysian-indians-least-likely-be-scammed-they-ask-too-many-questions-police?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 29 Apr 2026 06:13:12 +0000 Daniel Ren Daniel Ren Li Auto, one of Tesla’s major rivals in mainland China, has set its sights on the Middle East and Asia-Pacific, with its premium intelligent models poised to take on petrol car brands such as BMW and Mercedes-Benz. The Beijing-based electric vehicle (EV) maker, which is actively building a sales network abroad, expected overseas deliveries to account for 30 per cent of its total by 2030, according to president Ma Donghui. “It is inevitable that we will compete against BMW, Benz and Audi, which... https://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/3351481/chinas-li-auto-targets-bmw-and-mercedes-premium-suvs-middle-east-asia-pacific?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/3351481/chinas-li-auto-targets-bmw-and-mercedes-premium-suvs-middle-east-asia-pacific?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 26 Apr 2026 11:10:02 +0000 Aidan Jones Aidan Jones The US government has imposed sanctions on a Cambodian senator alleging he is at the heart of a sprawling scam network, as the Southeast Asian nation comes under intense pressure – including from China – to eliminate a cybercrime industry worth nearly US$20 billion a year. The US Treasury tagged Senator Kok An, a tycoon with close ties to former leader Hun Sen whose son is now prime minister, and 28 other associates as “specially designated nationals” suspected of controlling “scam compounds... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3351314/us-slaps-sanctions-cambodian-senator-suspected-controlling-scam-centres?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3351314/us-slaps-sanctions-cambodian-senator-suspected-controlling-scam-centres?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 24 Apr 2026 09:19:28 +0000 Sam Beltran Sam Beltran Albert*, a 68-year-old retiree in the Philippines, was struggling to log into the country’s Social Security System app in August last year when a man rang to offer help. The caller said he worked for the government pension fund, the website was down for maintenance and a new app had just been rolled out. To prove he was genuine, he sent Albert his full name, Social Security number, and home address over the Viber messaging app, followed by a link to the “new” app. More than an hour after Albert... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3351222/fake-app-drains-filipino-retirees-life-savings-malware-service?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3351222/fake-app-drains-filipino-retirees-life-savings-malware-service?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 24 Apr 2026 01:30:15 +0000 Laura Zhou Laura Zhou Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi called for China and Cambodia to “stand in closer solidarity, now more than ever” in the first 2+2 strategic dialogue aimed at deepening mutual political and security ties. During a meeting in Phnom Penh, Wang also urged the two sides to further strengthen political and security cooperation to “firmly hold the reins of development and security in their own hands”. The meeting on Wednesday was the first under the 2+2 mechanism with Cambodia involving defence and... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3351116/china-calls-cambodia-shared-security-and-risks-during-global-turmoil?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3351116/china-calls-cambodia-shared-security-and-risks-during-global-turmoil?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 23 Apr 2026 08:00:09 +0000 Aidan Jones Aidan Jones Plastic bags stuffed with rotting chicken from a smugglers’ boat washed ashore in Thailand have hinted at shortages inside Cambodia, as formal trade between the neighbours has collapsed amid their border conflict and illicit cargo flows surge instead. While demand appears high for smuggled Thai oil, fruit, meat and consumer items like soap, the Cambodian public is maintaining a boycott of Thai businesses in a nationalist backlash that reveals the depth of the enmity now staining relations... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3351045/smuggled-chicken-find-hints-cambodian-shortages-amid-thai-border-conflict?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3351045/smuggled-chicken-find-hints-cambodian-shortages-amid-thai-border-conflict?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 23 Apr 2026 00:00:08 +0000 Zoey Zhang Zoey Zhang A Chinese influencer’s live-stream recounting how she was lured to Cambodia and forced into a cyber scam operation was abruptly cut off, shortly before her social media account was banned. The 20-year-old, known online as Umi, is a live-stream host from southeastern China’s Fujian province with 24,000 followers on mainland platforms. Earlier this year, she gained national attention after being found in distress in Cambodia and returning safely to China in January. Three months ago, a netizen... https://www.scmp.com/news/people-culture/trending-china/article/3350824/china-influencer-tricked-cambodia-cyber-scam-recounts-ordeal-live-stream-was-cut-short?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/people-culture/trending-china/article/3350824/china-influencer-tricked-cambodia-cyber-scam-recounts-ordeal-live-stream-was-cut-short?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 21 Apr 2026 06:00:10 +0000 Joseph Koh Joseph Koh Long overshadowed by regional tourist hotspots such as Siem Reap, Bangkok and Hanoi, Phnom Penh is quietly emerging from its troubled past. The Cambodian capital is undergoing a metamorphosis that has largely flown under the radar, from the return of cosmopolitan locals launching thoughtful ventures to the pedestrianisation of riverside Chaktomuk Walk Street and the phase one opening of the Foster and Partners-designed Techo International Airport. Alongside this is a drinks scene that has been... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3350434/phnom-penh-asias-next-cocktail-capital-clever-menus-local-ingredients-and-more?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3350434/phnom-penh-asias-next-cocktail-capital-clever-menus-local-ingredients-and-more?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 20 Apr 2026 13:15:07 +0000 Maria Siow Maria Siow For Southeast Asia, trust in Japan runs deepest where China presses hardest and breaks down where neutrality is a point of pride. Analysts say that dynamic, revealed in an annual survey released earlier this month, explains why Vietnam and the Philippines both see the East Asian nation as a trusted partner while Indonesia, a country that has long prized non-alignment, is uncomfortable with Tokyo’s deepening embrace of Washington. Trust in Tokyo is highest in the Philippines (77.3 per cent),... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3350694/vietnam-and-philippines-trust-japan-why-doesnt-indonesia?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3350694/vietnam-and-philippines-trust-japan-why-doesnt-indonesia?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 20 Apr 2026 07:02:23 +0000 Nikola Mikovic Nikola Mikovic Since America launched its “major combat operation” against Iran, several Nato allies have distanced themselves from Washington. Now America also risks losing ground in strategically important Southeast Asia to China. Could it face an erosion of influence similar to that suffered by Russia in Central Asia as a result of its “special military operation” in Ukraine? Soon after US President Donald Trump launched massive air and missile strikes on Iran on February 28, it became clear Washington... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3350148/can-iran-fiasco-help-china-edge-out-us-key-arena-southeast-asia?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3350148/can-iran-fiasco-help-china-edge-out-us-key-arena-southeast-asia?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 19 Apr 2026 12:30:09 +0000 Ralph Jennings Ralph Jennings Construction of a US$1 billion Chinese-invested hydropower station has begun in Cambodia to facilitate the Southeast Asian country’s use of renewable energy as the fallout from the Iran war constricts developing countries’ access to traditional fuel supplies. Work on the Upper Tatay pumped-storage hydropower project in the hilly southwestern province of Koh Kong started on April 10, Xinhua reported, describing it as a future “green power bank” for Cambodia’s national grid. It said the project... https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3350480/china-begins-building-us1-billion-hydropower-station-cambodia-amid-energy-crisis?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3350480/china-begins-building-us1-billion-hydropower-station-cambodia-amid-energy-crisis?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 19 Apr 2026 00:00:15 +0000 dpa dpa While many Europeans are considering putting long-haul flying on the back burner as jet fuel costs and airfares climb, those with a trip already booked for Malaysia may need to watch out if ambling around with a camera slung across a shoulder. Following an early April warning about unlicensed street photography, city authorities in Kuala Lumpur, the country’s capital, have confiscated equipment from six people, five of them non-Malaysians, pending payment of fines levied under street hawking... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3350550/malaysia-unlicensed-street-photography-becomes-focus-crackdown?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3350550/malaysia-unlicensed-street-photography-becomes-focus-crackdown?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 18 Apr 2026 01:39:31 +0000 Aidan Jones Aidan Jones The world’s largest water fight erupted across Bangkok on Monday as the three-day annual Songkran festival drew a surge in tourists to a country whose bruised economy badly needed a reason to celebrate. Thailand has refused to let a fuel crisis triggered by the US-Israeli war on Iran dampen its traditional New Year’s celebrations, even as prices spike for everything from petrol to ice during the hottest month of the year. The water festival – also known as Thingyan in neighbouring Myanmar and... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3349881/splash-and-crash-thailand-celebrates-songkran-energy-crisis-deepens?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3349881/splash-and-crash-thailand-celebrates-songkran-energy-crisis-deepens?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 13 Apr 2026 07:50:10 +0000 Joanne Lin Joanne Lin For years, Southeast Asian countries have preferred to avoid taking sides between China and the United States. This year’s State of Southeast Asia survey shows that this approach still holds, but a more contested geostrategic environment is making it harder to sustain. The region continues to feel uneasy about China’s entrenched influence, is increasingly troubled by US leadership under President Donald Trump and is more conscious of Asean’s institutional constraints. The weakening of confidence... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/opinion/article/3349676/doubts-about-trump-strain-southeast-asias-us-china-balancing-act?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/opinion/article/3349676/doubts-about-trump-strain-southeast-asias-us-china-balancing-act?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 12 Apr 2026 04:00:08 +0000 Bloomberg Bloomberg Harvest-ready rice fields are lying idle and farmers are deciding whether to skip planting for the coming season, as spiking fuel and fertiliser costs from the war in the Middle East hit one of the world’s biggest rice-growing regions. Across Southeast Asia, tens of millions of smallholders are struggling to find affordable crop nutrients as well as the diesel needed to run tractors, irrigation pumps and rice planters. In Thailand, some farmers are leaving the crop in the ground as it is too... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/article/3349721/asias-panicked-farmers-brace-looming-rice-crisis-post-iran-war?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/article/3349721/asias-panicked-farmers-brace-looming-rice-crisis-post-iran-war?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 11 Apr 2026 03:00:33 +0000 Bloomberg Bloomberg Thai authorities have seized assets worth 8.3 billion baht (US$260 million) belonging to people behind an alleged money-laundering network linked to transnational cyber scam operations in Cambodia. The latest seizure by the Anti-Money Laundering Office included cash, cars, bank deposits and other securities, bringing the total value of assets confiscated in the widening probe to more than 20 billion baht, officials said at a briefing in Bangkok on Thursday. The network of offenders included... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3349581/thailand-snatches-us260-million-cross-border-scammers-decisive-crackdown?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3349581/thailand-snatches-us260-million-cross-border-scammers-decisive-crackdown?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 10 Apr 2026 01:14:54 +0000 Bloomberg Bloomberg Across much of the world, young people are turning away from military service. In Thailand, they are queuing up. Voluntary enlistment in the Southeast Asian nation has climbed steadily over the past five years – so much so that in some districts, annual conscription quotas, which happen in April, are being filled from ranks of willing men alone. It is somewhat paradoxical, considering the recent, lethal border clashes with Cambodia have made clear that military service is no longer a distant... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3349449/thai-men-sign-military-driven-prospect-steady-pay-amid-sluggish-economy?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3349449/thai-men-sign-military-driven-prospect-steady-pay-amid-sluggish-economy?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 09 Apr 2026 02:15:22 +0000 Sylvia Ma Sylvia Ma As the French central bank repatriates gold reserves from the United States, analysts say China should seize this “strategic window” to develop itself into the next global gold hub. They added that Beijing can leverage policy stability, alongside Hong Kong’s strengths in fintech such as blockchain, to build a modern gold trading centre, particularly as policy volatility under US President Donald Trump’s second term heightens global concerns and deepens the de-dollarisation trend. “I think [the... https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3349343/france-pulls-gold-us-how-can-china-develop-next-global-gold-hub?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3349343/france-pulls-gold-us-how-can-china-develop-next-global-gold-hub?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 08 Apr 2026 12:00:08 +0000 Maria Siow Maria Siow Cambodia’s first law targeting scam centres, passed after mounting international pressure over the country’s massive fraud and trafficking economy, may do little to curb it unless authorities go after the officials and networks that have long enabled it, analysts have warned. Approved by parliament on Friday, the law takes aim at an industry estimated to generate up to US$19 billion annually and to have trafficked as many as 200,000 workers into compounds across the country. Justice Minister... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3349298/cambodia-has-new-law-targeting-scams-it-just-another-paper-reform?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3349298/cambodia-has-new-law-targeting-scams-it-just-another-paper-reform?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 08 Apr 2026 00:00:17 +0000 Bryanna Entwistle Bryanna Entwistle On April 1, amid China’s cybercrime offensive in Southeast Asia, Cambodia extradited to China Li Xiong, former chairman of Huione Group, which had been severed from the US financial system last year for laundering at least US$336 million from cyber scams between 2021 and 2025. The US had also sanctioned Huione’s parent company, Prince Group, and indicted founder Chen Zhi. In January, Cambodia extradited Chen to China, securing the arrest of a man accused of being Cambodia’s biggest scam... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3349051/beat-cambodias-scam-gangs-us-must-work-china-not-blame-it?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3349051/beat-cambodias-scam-gangs-us-must-work-china-not-blame-it?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 07 Apr 2026 21:30:07 +0000 Aidan Jones Aidan Jones From sea transfers by smugglers and hoarding to stockpiling underground, profiteering from the oil crunch in Thailand has exacerbated a supply crisis that Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul warned on Monday was about to worsen, given the country’s reliance on fuel imports. As diesel pump prices hit an all-time high of around 50 baht (US$1.54) a litre on Monday, Justice Minister Major-General Rutthaphon Naowarat told reporters that “oil has definitely gone missing”, saying it was too early to... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3349177/oil-smugglers-hoarders-thailand-worsen-supply-crisis-anutin-warns-tough-times?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3349177/oil-smugglers-hoarders-thailand-worsen-supply-crisis-anutin-warns-tough-times?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 06 Apr 2026 11:19:54 +0000 Laura Zhou Laura Zhou The compound is modern with air conditioning in every room. Inside are a medical clinic, massage parlour, and Vietnamese barbecue, Chinese hotpot and halal eateries – a full range of conveniences. Yet the residents are gone – and they appear to have fled in haste. Clothes still hang out to dry, while the stench of rotting food lingers. Located in a secluded area in Kampot province near Cambodia’s border with Vietnam, the site is believed to be a telecoms scam centre. Cambodian authorities said... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3348930/game-whack-mole-how-could-scam-industry-bring-china-and-us-together?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3348930/game-whack-mole-how-could-scam-industry-bring-china-and-us-together?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 03 Apr 2026 22:00:10 +0000 Maria Siow Maria Siow Asean’s neutrality in the Iran conflict is key to granting access to the coveted Strait of Hormuz, with Tehran likely seeking to win global opinion amid its war with the United States and Israel. Amid boiling tensions in the Gulf, Iran has wielded its control of the strategic channel to choke global oil supplies, especially to the US and its allies. Many countries – including those from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations – have turned to diplomatic efforts to secure safe passage for... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3348759/why-asean-neutrality-iran-war-key-unlocking-strait-hormuz?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3348759/why-asean-neutrality-iran-war-key-unlocking-strait-hormuz?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 02 Apr 2026 05:41:08 +0000 SCMP SCMP We have selected seven stories from the SCMP’s coverage of Asia over the past week that resonated with our readers and shed light on topical issues. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. Trump’s ‘wind-up doll’? Japan’s PM faces backlash over White House fawning Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is facing accusations of diplomatic sycophancy after White House footage showed her giggling at a portrait of an autopen – placed by US President Donald... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/article/3348465/japan-pms-fawning-sparks-backlash-philippines-work-life-balance-fails-7-asia-highlights?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/article/3348465/japan-pms-fawning-sparks-backlash-philippines-work-life-balance-fails-7-asia-highlights?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 31 Mar 2026 04:12:07 +0000 Aidan Jones Aidan Jones Young, naive and now sleeping rough on a plastic sheet outside their embassy in Phnom Penh, Indonesians Abdul* and Hafiz* are among the expendable human resources of Southeast Asia’s scam trade. After a year-long tumble through Cambodia’s vortex of scams, they were cast out onto a pavement – penniless and without passports – waiting for the embassy to issue new travel documents and a plane ticket home. “Our Chinese boss stole all of our passports,” said Abdul, 20, gesturing to a dozen or so of... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3348190/cambodias-scam-crackdown-deadline-looms-criminal-gangs-flee?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3348190/cambodias-scam-crackdown-deadline-looms-criminal-gangs-flee?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 29 Mar 2026 02:00:10 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Singapore has seized over 830kg (1,800 lbs) of Asian pangolin scales hidden in a shipment bound for Cambodia, authorities said on Saturday, calling it the largest haul of its kind discovered in the city state. Falsely declared as “dried fish skin”, the scales – estimated to be from more than 2,200 pangolins – were found in 30 bags on December 29 after officials intercepted an inbound truck carrying sea cargo, Singapore’s National Parks Board said in a statement. The announcement came as... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3348253/singapore-seizes-record-asian-pangolin-scales-disguised-dried-fish-skin?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3348253/singapore-seizes-record-asian-pangolin-scales-disguised-dried-fish-skin?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 28 Mar 2026 09:59:47 +0000 Aidan Jones Aidan Jones Daniel Gech looks at prices on a board at a Sokimex petrol station in Phnom Penh and winces. Four weeks into the war in the Middle East, the ripple effects of a faraway conflict are beginning to threaten the Cambodian teenager’s ability to earn and learn. The 16-year-old uses his moped to travel between his home and school, and for his work in the evening. It now costs him an extra US$2 a day to fill up his tank – or US$14 a week – and the price is rising, a significant surge in a country where... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3347608/why-southeast-asian-nations-are-vulnerable-fuel-crisis-iran-war-rages?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3347608/why-southeast-asian-nations-are-vulnerable-fuel-crisis-iran-war-rages?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 23 Mar 2026 11:14:21 +0000 Aidan Jones Aidan Jones Anutin Charnvirakul sailed through a lower house vote on Thursday to become Thailand’s new prime minister, as the conservative establishment emerges on top after years of bitter struggle with pro-democrats. But Anutin’s vow to reset from years of slumping growth and political crisis has been complicated by the US-Israeli war on Iran, which is costing Thailand tens of millions of dollars each day to prop up fuel prices, with ominous queues forming at petrol stations. Addressing lawmakers before... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3347127/pm-anutin-takes-charge-thailand-mideast-chaos-pressures-economy?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3347127/pm-anutin-takes-charge-thailand-mideast-chaos-pressures-economy?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 19 Mar 2026 06:16:20 +0000