In The News

Burma in the US-China Great Game – Part I

David I. Steinberg December 5, 2011
The ice-breaking visit of US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to Naypyidaw ended 50 years of US-Burma estrangement. The Obama administration has signaled desire for US engagement with the pariah regime since 2009, and since March, Burma’s Thein Sein has strived to widen the military regime’s legitimacy both at home and abroad. Hope for reforms is in the air – and this YaleGlobal series analyzes...

Technology Boosts Bangladesh Migrant Job Search

Anbarasan Ethirajan November 9, 2011
The Bangladeshi government has turned to technology to assist its citizens in looking for jobs overseas. Any worker can now post his or her resume, national identification and passport details on a government website portal, which can then be viewed by foreign employers. This process reduces transaction costs related to attaining jobs overseas, particularly payoffs to corrupt middlemen, and rural...

Bollywood: To the Next Level

Amy Kazmin November 1, 2011
India’s Bollywood, a prolific producer of films, but a marginal player in the global market, has launched a film designed to win over foreign audiences. Ra.One cost $30 million, a record for Bollywood but inexpensive for Hollywood, reports the Financial Times. It combines traditional Bollywood song and dance themes with state-of-the-art visual effects and fast action to appeal to Western...

Wary of China, Its Southern Neighbors Court India

Harsh V. Pant October 28, 2011
China’s rapid ascent, along with the flexing of its muscles, has worried neighbors. They chafe at becoming too dependent, and a loose, yet perceptible balancing coalition aimed at curbing China has emerged. With the United States reorganizing its own priorities, India is viewed as an ideal partner for providing strategic balancing, explains Harsh V. Pant, a defense specialist at King’s College....

Floods Threaten Global Trade Hub

Pavin Chachavalpongpun October 24, 2011
Monsoon rains and typhoons have contributed to record flooding that saturates Thailand. Bangkok is under threat even as authorities try to relieve pressure by reinforcing levees, draining fields and releasing floodwaters into the sea. Most of Thailand is affected with rice fields submerged, food prices climbing, and supply-chain operations of multinational firms like Western Digital and Toyota...

New Zealand Oil Spill Ship Captain Charged

October 13, 2011
The cargo ship Rena ran aground off the port of Tauranga in New Zealand, and its captain has been charged with taking unnecessary risks. The accident is New Zealand’s worse environmental disaster in decades, with leaking oil hitting popular beaches and marine wildlife areas over the course of a week. The ship ran aground 5 October. Heavy swells continue to batter the grounded vessel, hampering...

Laos’ Spanking New Road to Nowhere

Haseenah Koyakutty October 12, 2011
To depend on others or not, that’s the dilemma of tiny Laos in connecting with neighboring nations. A highway, funded and built by Thailand, would connect the undeveloped Oudomxay region with Vietnam, Thailand and China. But a bridge crossing the Mekong River, part of the project, is left unfinished as China and Laos debate contract conditions. China’s population is 200 times larger than that of...