- — No need to overread the Middle East’s marriages of convenience
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at 8/9/26 10:44amThere is a familiar ritual in Washington’s foreign policy think tanks whenever two Middle Eastern states sign a memorandum of understanding, launch a joint economic council or hold their first-ever ministerial dialogue: the announcement is instantly upgraded, in the retelling, into a “strategic partnership.” A defense-industry side deal becomes an “alliance.” A trade corridor becomes [] The post No need to overread the Middle Easts marriages of convenience appeared first on Asia Times.- — US weighs tactical nukes as China, Russia raise escalatory stakes
- at 8/8/26 2:17pmThe US may be entering a period of significant nuclear reassessment as it confronts a growing mismatch between its predominantly strategic arsenal and adversaries increasingly prepared for limited nuclear use. This month, Breaking Defense reported that the US Department of Defense (DoD) has initiated a review of the nations nuclear posture to expand tactical nuclear [] The post US weighs tactical nukes as China, Russia raise escalatory stakes appeared first on Asia Times.
- — Makkah pact more strategic hedge than mutual defense revolution
- at 8/8/26 11:17amOn August 7, 2026, at Al-Safa Palace in Makkah, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif signed the Makkah Joint Defense Agreement — a trilateral pact declaring that an armed attack against any one of the three states will be treated as an attack against [] The post Makkah pact more strategic hedge than mutual defense revolution appeared first on Asia Times.
- — Unpacking the Saudi Arabia-Pakistan-Turkey defense pact
- at 8/8/26 10:03amThe recently signed Saudi Arabia-Pakistan-Turkey Joint Defense Agreement, concluded in Mecca on August 7, 2026, and referred to as the Makkah Joint Defense Agreement, marks a significant development in the evolving strategic architecture of the Middle East. The agreement was signed by Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz [] The post Unpacking the Saudi Arabia-Pakistan-Turkey defense pact appeared first on Asia Times.
- — The political black hole over the Strait of Hormuz
- at 8/8/26 8:06amThe absence of Irans supreme leader, doubts about his condition and internal power divisions are turning the country into a failing state — spreading chaos as far as China. What will Beijing do? Iranian regime media have claimed the emerging Iran-Oman deal would let Iran maintain control of the Strait of Hormuz. Still, many in [] The post The political black hole over the Strait of Hormuz appeared first on Asia Times.
- — California may win chip race while losing productivity one
- at 8/8/26 7:19amSilicon Valley built its reputation by making transistors smaller and smaller. For decades, each shrink delivered a predictable payoff: faster computers, cheaper computing power, new products and new industries. Moores Law became a self-reinforcing cycle. Lower costs expanded demand, rising demand funded the next generation of innovation and the result was an economy where a [] The post California may win chip race while losing productivity one appeared first on Asia Times.
- — Nuclear age began 81 years ago with lies, could end the same way
- at 8/7/26 5:58pmThe atomic age began with a lie. Eighty-one years ago this week, a single American airplane, flying almost unnoticed over a Japanese city, dropped a single bomb that destroyed the entire city. Three days later another American plane destroyed a second city. The atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima on August 6, 1945 and Nagasaki on August 9, 1945 killed [] The post Nuclear age began 81 years ago with lies, could end the same way appeared first on Asia Times.
- — Out of bullets, US will have to adjust and change security policy
- at 8/7/26 5:26pmWhile President Trump says the US is not short of weapons, he has told Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky that the US does not have Patriot interceptors to send to Ukraine because “we need them for ourselves.” The best face to put on the situation is that some in the Pentagon leaked information that US stockpiles [] The post Out of bullets, US will have to adjust and change security policy appeared first on Asia Times.
- — Japan’s non-nuclear consensus starts to fray
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at 8/7/26 5:04amSubscribe nowwith a one-month trial for only $1, then enjoy the first year at an exclusive rate of just $99. Takaichi tries to have it both ways in HiroshimaScott Foster reports that Sanae Takaichi is formally affirming Japan’s Three Non-Nuclear Principles while leaving room to revise the ban on nuclear weapons entering Japan. Public opposition [] The post Japan’s non-nuclear consensus starts to fray appeared first on Asia Times. - — SoftBank’s ‘crazy guy’ canary-in-coalmine role in AI
- at 8/7/26 2:34amFor Masayoshi Son, the AI boom has been both a blessing and a curse for a conglomerate that had lost its way. In June, AI returned SoftBank Group to the top. For the first time in 22 years, Sons conglomerate overtook, for a time, Toyota Motor in market capitalization to become Japans most valuable public [] The post SoftBank’s crazy guy canary-in-coalmine role in AI appeared first on Asia Times.
- — Kyrgyzstan’s Dordoi Bazaar, a world made from shipping containers
- at 8/6/26 9:37pmWhen I left Ainura’s container-shop at the Dordoi Bazaar in Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan, I found the market eerily quiet. I had not noticed the passing of time while she was generously sharing her life story with me. As I walked toward the mini-bus stop at the square in front of the bazaar, the [] The post Kyrgyzstan’s Dordoi Bazaar, a world made from shipping containers appeared first on Asia Times.
- — China’s bamboo growth model vs. India’s eucalyptus growth model
- at 8/6/26 7:30pmNature offers unexpectedly good lessons in strategy. As a child, I was fond of bamboo shoots, though none grew in our farmland. My mother, noticing my enthusiasm, suggested that I plant some myself. A neighbor gave me a stalk about three feet tall, which I planted, watered and fussed over. Nothing happened. A year passed [] The post Chinas bamboo growth model vs. Indias eucalyptus growth model appeared first on Asia Times.
- — AI age demands a new political system
- at 8/6/26 4:00pmDig the Well before you are thirsty, says an old Chinese proverb. The world has debated China’s rise through the lens of ideology. Some believe it is communism that transformed China into the world’s second largest economy, while others think it is capitalism disguised under a red flag. But both answers overlook an important reality. [] The post AI age demands a new political system appeared first on Asia Times.
- — Hasina baits and jabs Dhaka from the safety of New Delhi
- at 8/6/26 1:41pmNearly two years after fleeing Dhaka in disgrace, ousted Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina made her first live public address on Wednesday (August 5). Speaking via audio from an event organized by the Foreign Correspondents Club of South Asia in New Delhi, Hasina attempted to signal the dawn of a political comeback. Yet what transpired [] The post Hasina baits and jabs Dhaka from the safety of New Delhi appeared first on Asia Times.
- — US polysilicon tariffs to move solar makers to domestic materials
- at 8/6/26 1:27pmThe United States is moving to impose a 15% tariff and a series of price floors on polysilicon and its derivative products, a step designed to push solar panel manufacturers toward domestic raw materials. The proposal follows a national security investigation the US launched in July 2025 under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion [] The post US polysilicon tariffs to move solar makers to domestic materials appeared first on Asia Times.
- — Japan’s missile leap marks shift from defense to counterstrike
- at 8/6/26 1:12pmJapans successful Tomahawk and Upgraded Type-12 tests mark a decisive shift beyond interception-only defense toward a more assertive counterstrike posture. Last month, multiple media outlets reported that Japans Defense Ministry significantly expanded its long-range strike capabilities by conducting two milestone tests of standoff missile systems aimed at strengthening deterrence in the Indo-Pacific. In late July, [] The post Japans missile leap marks shift from defense to counterstrike appeared first on Asia Times.
- — Railway can transform Persian Gulf politics and global security
- at 8/5/26 11:02pmThe crisis in the Strait of Hormuz, wider tensions in the Red Sea and the oil price spikes these circumstances occassion have made one thing abundantly clear: Gulf countries and global markets are dependent on vulnerable maritime routes. But while national leaders and diplomats work to free up crucial waterways through which much of the [] The post Railway can transform Persian Gulf politics and global security appeared first on Asia Times.
- — US microreactor startup Valar Atomics raises $1B
- at 8/5/26 10:24pmValar Atomics, a three-year-old microreactor developer that has a forged a close relationship with the Trump administration, has raised $1 billion in its Series B funding round as investors increasingly bet that the White House’s overhaul of nuclear regulations will clear the way for the country’s first big atomic buildout in more than half a century. This week, the Torrance, [] The post US microreactor startup Valar Atomics raises $1B appeared first on Asia Times.
- — Untangling AI’s loop diagrams: the megaphone as market indicator
- at 8/5/26 4:23pmThere is a way to work out which direction markets have been moving without looking at a single price. Watch who is handed the megaphone. When things go up, the optimists get the panel seats and the magazine covers. When things turn down, as they have these past few weeks, the bears who had gone [] The post Untangling AIs loop diagrams: the megaphone as market indicator appeared first on Asia Times.
- — South Asia slides into new kind of arms race unrestrained by rules
- at 8/5/26 3:16pmIndia and Pakistan fought an intense four-day war in May 2025 and the media narrative was dominated by fighter jets, drones and missiles. But the most consequential contest unfolded in orbit a few hundred kilometers up. That short war was, arguably, the first between two nuclear-armed states to be shaped decisively by the use of [] The post South Asia slides into new kind of arms race unrestrained by rules appeared first on Asia Times.
- — Bangladesh’s economy stable on the surface, fragile underneath
- at 8/5/26 2:48pmBangladesh Bank is beginning to loosen monetary policy from an unusually favorable position on the currency front. Despite persistent inflation and deep strains in the banking system, the taka has been among the most stable currencies in South Asia and neighboring economies over the past year, while foreign exchange reserves have recovered sharply. Yet that [] The post Bangladeshs economy stable on the surface, fragile underneath appeared first on Asia Times.
As of 8/9/26 11:54am. Last new 8/9/26 10:47am.
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