infrastructure
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Plugging Timor-Leste Into ASEAN: Could China Power the Region’s Next Great Integration?
Timor-Leste’s entry into ASEAN exposes a structural weakness in the region’s energy integration. The ASEAN Power Grid promises resilience through connectivity but remains vulnerable if new and weaker members stay outside its core infrastructure. With Timor-Leste reliant on costly diesel and lacking interconnections, external support is unavoidable. China’s deep experience…
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The China-Laos Railway and the Price of Connectivity: Unequal Partners in a “Win-Win” Project
Despite its “win-win” branding as a flagship Belt and Road link transforming Laos from “land-locked” to “land-linked,” the China–Laos Railway has deepened asymmetric power dynamics. Thousands of Laotian families have been displaced, Laos’ 30 % ownership stake was financed by onerous Chinese loans that trap it in debt, and both…
Sino-Southeast Initiative 