Executive Summary: Russia’s state-owned nuclear corporation, Rosatom, and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) have taken the most tangible step thus far in nuclear energy cooperation from the bilateral to the institutional level, with the signing of a new Memorandum of Understanding. The Kremlin... MORE

Executive Summary: Growing investments by the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in liquefied natural gas (LNG) and pipeline infrastructure are increasing its geopolitical influence in energy markets. PRC LNG re-exports have increased dramatically from 2022, with re-exports surging nearly 770 percent from 2024. Recent progress... MORE

Executive Summary Paresh Baruah, the long-time leader of the United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA), remains at large in Myanmar and along the China border, sustaining a weakened but still symbolically potent Assamese separatist movement through criminal networks and transnational alliances. Though ULFA-I’s operational capacity... MORE

Executive Summary: Menase Tabuni became chairman of United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP) in 2023, replacing Benny Wenda’s “government-in-waiting” of the Papuan independence movement with a new constitution and headquarters in Vanuatu, sparking a bitter leadership split. Wenda, backed by the West Papua People’s... MORE

Executive Summary: Jamaah Ansharusy Syariah (JAS), once an anti-Islamic State jihadist splinter group, has shifted its stance since late 2024 by recognizing Indonesia as an “Islamic state” and softening its rejection of democracy. This marks a significant ideological pivot toward actively cooperating with state institutions.... MORE

Executive Summary: Saw Chit Thu is a warlord active in Karen State in southeastern Myanmar. Thu’s Karen Border Guard Force controls a stretch of the Thai–Myanmar border. Once an ally of the ruling junta, Thu appears to have switched sides after witnessing the rebels’ military... MORE

Executive Summary: Hong Kong launched a new stablecoin regime on August 1, continuing its cautious embrace of emerging financial products nearly three years after declaring its intention to become a digital assets hub. In anticipation of the new regime, July saw a flurry of fundraising... MORE

Executive Summary: Philippine officials declared the island of Basilan free of Abu Sayyaf on June 10. Basilan was formerly one of the group’s strongholds and represents another example of the group’s near-complete degradation. With the war on Islamist radical groups in Southeast Asia largely won,... MORE

Executive Summary: Indonesia has enjoyed some success with deradicalizing high-level militants, including Umar Patek, a key bomb-maker involved with the deadly 2002 Bali bombings. This approach has involved the use of mentorship and entrepreneurial incentives to integrate former Islamists back into society. Indonesia’s program to... MORE

Executive Summary: The Arakan Army (AA), an ethno-nationalist rebel group active in Myanmar, has managed to seize some 90 percent of Rakhine State, with several major cities under siege and the entirety of the border with Bangladesh under their control. The group is receiving increasing... MORE