Asia News

The Daily Signal delivers Asia-Pacific news with reporting and conservative commentary on regional security challenges, U.S. military alliances, China containment strategy, Taiwan defense, North Korea threats, economic competition, and America’s vital interests in the Indo-Pacific region.
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  • opinion

    Japan Dodged a COVID-19 Bullet … Or Did It?
    There has been far less international focus on Japan’s low-key response to COVID-19 than on South Korea’s extensive testing program. The latter strategy is now extolled as an international model for bending the curve, but with few early cases in Japan, media reports questioned how the country had done so well with such little effort….
    Bruce Klingner
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  • news

    5 Things Americans Should Know About South Korea’s Handling of Coronavirus
    This week in South Korea, a 97-year-old woman—well into the age group most susceptible to the coronavirus—fully recovered from COVID-19.  This was one more victory for South Korea, a U.S. ally that is viewed as a success story to the world in combating the coronavirus pandemic.  The small country of South Korea is close to…
    Fred Lucas
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  • opinion

    South Korea Provides Lessons, Good and Bad, on Coronavirus Response
    Early international media reporting on the outbreak of the COVID-19 coronavirus in South Korea was both alarming and alarmist. News coverage emphasized that, outside of China, South Korea had the highest number of coronavirus cases, which led 170 other countries to impose travel entry bans on South Koreans. But, after new cases peaked in late…
    Bruce Klingner
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  • opinion

    Japan Augments Alliance Capabilities, but More Needs to Be Done
    Since returning as prime minister of Japan in 2012, Shinzo Abe has fulfilled long-standing promises to develop new military capabilities and expand its security role in the region and globally. Abe has enacted an impressive list of national security initiatives and has overseen a moderate increase in the country’s defense budget. Japan took a step…
    Bruce Klingner
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  • opinion

    The Fight for Semiconductor Leadership in Asia
    Beijing wants to become the global leader in a variety of advanced technologies. To get there, government entities have been investing more than $100 billion in China’s domestic semiconductor industry.   Beijing has set an ambitious goal for China to domestically produce 40% of the country’s demand for semiconductors by next year and 70% by 2025, up from less than 20% now.   Governments around the world are worried about…
    Junsoo Kweon | Riley Walters
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  • opinion

    South Korea Made the Right Call Staying in Intelligence Sharing Agreement With Japan
    For a while, it looked as though South Korea might abandon a critical military information sharing agreement with Japan. Its last-minute decision to remain in the agreement is welcome news. Established in 2016, the General Security of Military Information Agreement enables both South Korea and Japan to share military intelligence in partnership with the United…
    Bruce Klingner
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  • opinion

    South Korean Youth Suffer Consequences of Progressive Economics
    The progressive policies of South Korean President Moon Jae-in are a threat to his nation’s economy. Young people in South Korea are suffering most from those policies as youth unemployment continues to rise. With national debt growing at a rapid pace, and a rapidly aging population, there are large concerns over the future of the…
    Justin Rhee | Riley Walters
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  • opinion

    US-Japan Trade Agreement Would Help American Farmers
    There was some good news Wednesday on the agricultural trade front. The Office of the United States Trade Representative just announced several key provisions of the new U.S.-Japan agreement that would benefit U.S. agricultural producers and American consumers. If the agreement goes into effect (the agreement is not yet final), American farmers and ranchers will…
    Daren Bakst | Gabriella Beaumont-Smith
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  • news

    Solar Panels in Asia, Border Security for El Salvador: Trump Tries to Rein in Wasted Tax Dollars Abroad
    Amid contentious debate in Washington on how much to devote to securing the southern border, what might surprise some is that tax dollars are going to finance border security for countries in the Pacific and in East, South, and Central Asia.  That’s not all, because the United States is paying for border security for a…
    Fred Lucas
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  • opinion

    Japanese Upper House Election Puts Abe in a Strong Position
    Japan held elections over the weekend for 124 of the 245 seats in the upper house of Japan’s legislature, the House of Councilors, and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s political party, the Liberal Democratic Party, maintained its majority and how holds 113 seats. Upper house elections in Japan are held every three years, which means Abe,…
    Aidan Berger | Riley Walters
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  • opinion

    Why South Korea Is Key to America’s Indo-Pacific Strategy
    During his recent visit to South Korea, President Donald Trump discussed with South Korean President Moon Jae-in a range of issues pertaining to our bilateral partnership. One of the least-noticed but actually critical outcomes was an acknowledgement by Moon of America’s Indo-Pacific strategy, which refers to America’s approach to various powers in the region. Moon…
    Anthony B. Kim
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  • opinion

    School District Near DC Under Investigation Amid Allegations of Discriminating Against Asians
    Is a public school system in a leafy county straddling the Capital Beltway discriminating against Asian Americans? The feds next door are investigating in a case with national implications, and with good reason: The type of racial balancing that Montgomery County Public Schools is using may well be illegal. No one questions that the changes MCPS…
    Mike Gonzalez
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  • opinion

    Japan’s New Emperor Marks a New Era
    May 1 marks an important day in Japan’s history. On Wednesday, Japanese Emperor Akihito will abdicate the throne and cede it to his son, Crown Prince Naruhito. While the event is largely symbolic, it will usher in a new era for Japan. Japan, like most other countries in the world, uses the same Gregorian calendar…
    Riley Walters
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  • opinion

    Why Ending US-South Korea Joint Exercises Was the Wrong Move
    The Trump administration made a decision that could weaken U.S. and South Korean readiness in a conflict with North Korea. On Saturday, the Pentagon and South Korea’s Ministry of Defense announced an end to the joint military exercises that both countries normally partake in each spring. As justification, the Pentagon cited its “desire to reduce…
    Thomas Spoehr
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  • opinion

    Short Is the Road That Leads From Abortion to Infanticide, Euthanasia
    A Democratic senator blocked on Monday night the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act, which would have ensured children who survived abortions were given medical care. Unfortunately, this shouldn’t be a complete shock. In the years since Roe v. Wade, our culture has continued its downward trend to supporting death, not life. The Born-Alive Abortion Survivors…
    Bruce Ashford
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  • opinion

    Asia Bibi Is 1 Step Closer to Freedom
    The Pakistan Supreme Court thankfully rejected a petition Tuesday seeking to revisit the acquittal of Asia Bibi, a Pakistani Christian woman who had been convicted of blasphemy and spent eight years on death row before being exonerated by that country’s high court in October of last year. However, radical Muslims fueled public riots demanding her execution and…
    Tony Perkins
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  • opinion

    Harvard Gives Asian-Americans Low ‘Personality’ Ratings to Justify Discrimination
    The Department of Justice recently forced Harvard University to reveal critical details about how it selects students for admission. And it isn’t pretty. Asian-Americans have long accused Harvard of discriminating against them on the basis of race. The Asian student group Students for Fair Admissions filed a lawsuit demanding Harvard turn over documents detailing its…
    Kenny Xu
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  • news

    Asian-American Parents Join Forces to Fight for ‘Education Fairness’
    About 100 parents, largely of Chinese-American descent, gathered on a recent Saturday afternoon inside an elementary school near Washington, D.C., to hear Heritage Foundation scholar Michael Gonzalez speak against racial preferences in school admissions. Gonzalez, a senior fellow in the leading conservative think tank’s Davis Institute for International Studies who has written on the subject,…
    Kenny Xu
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  • news

    Harvard Keeps Denying It Discriminates Against Asian-Americans Ahead of October Trial
    Harvard University remains steadfast in its claim that it does not discriminate against Asian-American applicants, issuing another denial Friday in court documents ahead of its October trial. The Ivy League institution called statistical analysis conducted by plaintiff and nonprofit group Students for Fair Admissions “deeply flawed” and that it contributed to a “misleading narrative,” reported The…
    Rob Shimshock
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  • opinion

    Suspending Military Exercises in South Korea Carries Risks
    Only a few tangible outcomes emerged from the Singapore summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. One of those was Trump’s announcement that “we will be stopping the war games, which will save us a tremendous amount of money.” Trump went on to add that the games will be halted…
    Thomas Spoehr
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