ASEAN and the Russian Navy

https://www.thedefensepost.com/2021/12/01/russia-asean-naval-drills/

The move by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to hold joint naval drills with Russia is a slap in the face to China but on a far greater level to the United States which has earnestly sought to court these nations since the Obama era. It sends a clear signal that the ASEAN members are not willing to simply bow to the US, nor are they willing to trust Washington to any quantifiable degree. They're going to hedge their bets and keep all options open – which for the US represents a diplomatic defeat.

Myanmar Woes

http://asianews.it/news-en/Pro-China-rebels-shut-down-Baptist-churches,-arrest-Baptist-pastors-and-expel-Catholic-nuns-45072.html

It is unclear as to whether the anti-Christian policies of the United Wa State Army (UWSA) are emulations of Chinese policy or are in fact being encouraged by Beijing.

Myanmar or Burma has been embroiled in a series of overlapping civil wars since its independence in 1948 and many outsiders have played a part. The US has officially been uninvolved since they airlifted Kuomintang (KMT) remnants out of the country in 1953 but only the willingly blind would believe such a story. The truth is Washington has been deeply involved in the Karen struggle as well as some of the other 'internal conflicts' which continue to plague the Southeast Asian nation.

OBOR in Laos... and Thailand

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2018/02/china-rail-project-link-landlocked-laos-asia-180203125337792.html

The One Belt One Road (OBOR) or New Silk Road initiative has been in the news a lot as of late. This brief piece cites yet another instance of OBOR's expansion. The fact that Beijing would collaborate with Laos is hardly a surprise but Thailand's inclusion points once again to the weakened hand of the United States. The US withdrawal from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) has reduced its standing in the region. While Thailand was not one of the original members of the TPP, the longtime US ally had aspirations to join the framework. Where the TPP stands now is still up in the air but without the US, it won't in any way represent what it once did.

Pivot Collapse: Thailand's Junta Moves Toward Moscow and Beijing

There are so many aspects of the US election that have been covered and yet American mainstream media has largely failed to report on the international effects.

The collapse of TPP and the movement of the EU toward autonomy in light of Brexit are perhaps somewhat known but there have also been some interesting developments in Asia. While the Philippine's Duterte has made the news for cursing Obama and cozying up to Beijing there are other stories that point to the American 'Pivot' being in jeopardy.

Pan-Turkism, Russia, China and Tibet

Pan-Turkism was actively promoted by US backed interests in Turkey during the Cold War but especially in the days following the collapse of the USSR.

Epilogue to Indochina

I heartily recommend the recent Frontline programme: Terror in Little Saigon. It was an interesting and refreshing look into the Vietnamese-American community and their activities during the 1980's and beyond. It reveals a little known epilogue to the war in Indochina. The repercussions of that war and its aftermath live on to this very day.